The San Jose State University women’s swimming and diving team won 10 of 12 total events to comfortably get past Cal State Bakerfield, 149-61, in a dual meet at CSUB’s Hillman Aquatics Center on Friday, January 4.
With the win in its first competition of 2008, a second straight triumph away from home, San Jose State improves its dual meet record to 6-4 on the season. Cal State Bakersfield drops to 0-3. The Spartans had also won at third-year head coach Sage Hopkins’ alma mater, 188-160, a year ago on January 6, 2007.
Caitlin Macky, a true freshman out of San Diego, Calif., and West Hills High School, led the way for the Spartans as their only double individual winner, in the 200 IM (2:13.24) and 200 breaststroke (2:29.97) events. She also swam the breaststroke leg of the first-place 200 medley relay to begin the meet.
Joining Macky on the ‘A’ medley relay were Lauren Mar, Jillene Golez and freshman freestyle anchor Daphne Yeung as the foursome timed 1:51.03. The ‘B’ relay of freshmen Rudie Guerrero, Kirsten Trammell and Julie Wynn, with sophomore Ally Jack on the butterfly leg, swam 1:54.95 for second place.
Amanda Carr (10:49.24) and Ashley Krisman (10:55.78) finished 1-2 in the 1000 freestyle, while Amanda Mikaelsson timed 11:39.72 in fourth in her first collegiate 1000 freestyle race.
Erin Garcia posted her first collegiate win in a dual meet in the 200 freestyle, swimming 1:58.64, with freshman Julia Koch (1:59.62) following her in second. Returners Hannah Tringham (2:01.02) and Tarolyn Robertson (2:02.15) went 3-4 in their first 200 freestyle races this season.
Senior co-captain Brie Marhenke remained perfect 9-0 this season and 21-0 in her Spartan career in dual meets in the 50 freestyle, winning Friday’s event in 23.67, by over a second and a half over freshman teammate Meghan McCurley. Julie Wynn (26.41) and Sara Riley (26.61) placed fourth and sixth, respectively.
In addition to touching second behind fellow freshman standout Macky in the 200 IM in 214.76, Trammell won the 200 fly in 2:14.03. It marked her first collegiate 200 butterfly race. Jack was second in 215.50.
With Marhenke sitting the 100 freestyle out, McCurley earned her first collegiate dual meet victory in 54.72, leading a 1-2-3-5 charge of Spartan freshmen with Yeung (55.80), Koch (56.26) and Krisman (58.01) following her.
Mar turned in a season-best time of 2:08.27 in winning the 200 backstroke event, shaving more than two seconds off her previous best in her junior year, of 2:10.38 from October. Guerrero was fourth in 2:15.48.
Marhenke returned to the pool to lead off the winning ‘A’ 200 freestyle relay to close the meet, sprinting to a 23.93 split as the foursome timed 1:41.44. Guerrero, Koch and Riley followed Marhenke, with Guerrero and Riley notching the first relay wins in dual competition of their Spartan careers.
McCurley, Yeung, Robertson and Wynn made up the second-place ‘B’ relay in 1:42.08. The Spartan ‘C’ relay off senior co-captain Nikki Chapman, Mikaelsson, Ashley Ladd and Krisman, went 1:50.23 for fourth place. Chapman’s leadoff leg marked her first freestyle race of the season, as well as her first career 200 free relay appearance.
Jo Thibodaux, a freshman diver from Alvin, Texas, finished second on both the one-meter (198.75) and three-meter (200.25) springboards. Sophomore Emily Bissett notched both Cal State Bakersfield wins on the day with first-place marks of 219.15 on the one-meter and 216.45 on the three-meter board.
The Spartans and ‘Runners face off again at the Hillman Aquatics Center on Saturday, January 5, in another 12-event dual meet. The day’s activity will begin at 11:00 a.m. with the 400 medley relay.
