South Carolina Invite - Day One

DUKE

The Blue Devils came out strong in the morning session of Day 1 at the Gamecock Invitational. By midday, the women stood in second place, trailing only North Carolina while the men held on to third place behind North Carolina and South Carolina.

Junior Ashley Twichell set the fastest qualifying time of the meet in the 500 freestyle with an NCAA ‘B’ standard time of 4:52.34. Senior Jackie Fasano turned in a time of 4:57.77 to take the fifth qualifying spot at the invitational. Katie Magee broke the 5-minute mark for the first time this season with a 4:59.63 in the event, good enough for the eighth-best qualifying mark. Meghan Dwyer and Rose O’Connor also finished in the top-24, qualifying for finals.

On the men’s side, sophomore Nathan French claimed the last finals spot with a 4:40.87. Other notable performances came from Sean Smith, Hunter Roux, and Matt Carder who were the first three alternates in that order.

The Blue Devil women stepped up their effort in the 200 IM. Shannon Beall was the fourth-fastest qualifier with a time of 2:06.05. She will be joined in the finals by Jessica Perry (7th, 2:07.18), Elizabeth Bellew (10th, 2:07.66), Meredith Bannon (11th, 2:07.81), Katharine Bodnar (15th, 2:08.82), Kaitlin Ray (20th, 2:09.46), Emily Kintz (21st, 2:09.50), Haley Read (22nd, 2:09.66), and Kate Toth (23rd, 2:09.70).

The women’s performance in the 200 IM is exactly what head coach Dan Colella was looking for from his swimmers. Out of the 24 swimmers who will be competing in the event’s finals, nine of them will be wearing Duke suits.

Duke will be represented by four individuals in the men’s 200 IM finals. Spencer Booth (15th, 1:55.06), Nick Garvy (18th, 1:56.47), Alex Kluge (t-22nd, 1:57.00), and David Hahn (t-22nd, 1:57.00) will all have the opportunity to score for Duke in the event.

The most competitive qualifying races of the day, however, were the 50 yard freestyles with 74 women and 60 men vying for 24 finals slots apiece. Steffi Niessl and Kirstie Jeffrey were the top qualifiers for the Duke women, claiming the fifth and seventh slots, respectively. Ben Hwang grabbed the attention of his competitors by claiming the top qualifying spot in a time of 20.90. Senior Sean Smith will join him in the top heat at finals as the fourth-fastest qualifier. Additionally, Andy Osterland (9th, 21.38), Ben Tuben (15th, 21.50), Nick Garvy (21st, 21.55), and David Carlson (22nd, 21.60) all qualified to compete in finals.

After the invitational’s first evening session, the team results remained unchanged with the Duke women holding on to second place and the men in third place.

In the women’s 200 freestyle relay finals, the Duke squad of Kirstie Jeffrey, Steffi Niessl, Francesca Tocci, and Shannon Beall claimed fourth place and contributed 30 points to the team score. The men demonstrated they have the talent to compete with some of the nation’s best squads, taking second and third place in the event.

Twichell returned to the pool looking to defend the 500 freestyle title she won at least year’s Gamecock Invitational. After 20 lengths of the pool first and second place were separated by .07 seconds with Twichell coming out on top in dramatic fashion. Teammates Fasano and Magee both finished in the top eight, scoring 12 and 11 points, respectively. On the men’s side, French was the only Blue Devil who earned the right to compete in finals. He finished in 23rd place, slightly improving on the time he posted in prelims.

In the 200 IM, Shannon Beall led the way for the Blue Devils with her second-place finish, but she was far from alone; Perry, Bannon, Bellew, and Bodnar all contributed to the scoring effort. The men were guided by Booth who claimed 14th place with a time of 1:54.40, earning three points for his team.

In the women’s 50 freestyle finals, Steffi Niessl took sixth while Kirstie Jeffrey finished eighth overall. The men’s top finals heat featured three Blue Devils; Hwang (4th), Smith (7th), and Osterland (8th).

Wrapping up the first day of events at the Gamecock Invitational was the 400 medley relay. Duke’s fastest women’s team of Dwyer, Bannon, Beall, and Jeffrey finished second in a field of 24, while the men’s squad of Booth, Carlson, Garvy, and Hwang claimed fourth.


JAMES MADISON

Through five events in a strong field of eight teams, James Madison sits in fifth place after the first day of competition at the 2009 Gamecock Invitational hosted by the University of South Carolina in the Carolina Natatorium.
 
JMU earned 65 points on the opening day and sits fifth out of eight teams.  North Carolina, ranked 14th nationally in the College Swimming Coaches Association of America poll, sits first with 357 points.  Duke is second with 243 points, followed by East Carolina (161), South Carolina (151), JMU (65), Georgia Southern (50), Florida (42), and Old Dominion (16).
 
Most of JMU’s points for the day came in a pair of relay races, highlighted by sixth-place and seventh-place finishes in the 200 free relay for 26 and 24 points, respectively.  The team of senior P.J. Naber (Chantilly, Va./Chantilly), sophomore Becca Hunt (Glen Allen, Va./J.R. Tucker), junior Carrie Greene (Midlothian, Va./Granbury), and junior Carly Gibson (Bethesda, Md./Academy of the Holy Cross) finished in 1:37.32.  The group of sophomore Christina Lepore (Charlotte, N.C./Providence), junior Morgan McCarthy (New Castle, Del/St. Mark’s), sophomore Lauren Kranz (Clifton, Va./James Robinson), and senior Amanda Hauck (Woodbridge, Va./Forest Park) were nearly identical in 1:37.35. 
 
The other relay points came from the 400 medley relay that finished 10th for 14 points.  The squad of freshman Caroline Burns (Severna Park, Md./Severn School), junior Lisa Colapietro (Hollidaysburg, Pa./Hollidaysburg), Gibson, and Naber finished in 3:54.45.  It was the sixth-best 400 medley time in program history.
 
The final point for the Dukes on Thursday came from sophomore Emily Vance (Moraga, Calif./Campolindo) with a 16-th place finish in the 500 freestyle in 5:03.73, good for 10th on JMU’s all-time list.


NORTH CAROLINA

Both Tar Heel men and women's swimming teams finished day one in the Gamecock Invitational with an impressive lead. The Tar Heels are competing against nine other schools in the three-day meet in Colombia, South Carolina.

"This kind of competition and setting in the fall is something we aim for and try to focus on. It is a great rehearsal for the ACC and NCAA Championships. To get ready for a possible thirteen swims over three days takes conditioning, courage, focus and resilience," said head coach Rich DeSelm  .

"This is a good meet to get swims at night. We are not really rested and did not prepare in any special way. So to swim well this morning and even better tonight is very encouraging," said DeSelm.

The men and women's teams were off to a fast start taking first in both 200-yard freestyle relays.

The Heels distance swimmers represented well in the 500-yard freestyle placing three women in the top eight and four men. Junior Katura Harvey took second place with a season best time of 4:47.75 that is also an NCAA "B" qualifying time. Junior Tyler Harris got the victory on the men's side after swimming the 500 for the first time this season. Harris also received a NCAA "B" qualifying time with a 4:26.57.

The 200-yard Individual Medley was another strong event for the women. The Tar Heels placed five girls in the top eight led by Sophomore Layne Brodie in a time of 2:03.00, her season best time. Brodie was followed in third by Senior Alison Clemens and fourth by Sophomore Sarah Tanner  . Sophomore Marie Pesacreta   and Freshman Rebecca Brooks placed fifth and eighth, respectively.
 
 Sophomore Steve Cebertowicz sprinted to first place in the 50-yard freestyle in a time of 20.83, followed closely in third by Junior Tommy Wyher  . The Heels finished out the session with the 400-yard medley relay where both the men and women took first and third place.

"Traditionally we are stronger on the last day with the 200s of the strokes, but we are becoming a more well rounded team with our strong sprinters and divers. I am curious to see how we do these next two days. It is hard to determine which day will be our strongest, but it is something to be excited about," said DeSelm.

The Tar Heels will compete again in the morning for prelims that begin at 10 a.m.

Individual Event Winners
Women's 200-yard freestyle relay: UNC (A)  1:33.58
Men's 200-yard freestyle relay: UNC  (A) 1:22.77
Women's 500-yard freestyle: Ashley Twichell (Duke) 4:47.68
Men's 500-yard freestyle: Tyler Harris   (UNC) 4:26.57
Women's 200-yard IM: Layne Brodie  (UNC) 2:03.00
Men's 200-yard IM: Randy Buchanan (C of C) 1:48.87
Women's 50-yard freestyle: Sharntelle McLean (USC) 23.11
Men's 50-yard freestyle: Steve Cebertowicz (UNC) 20.83
Women's 400-yard medley relay: UNC (A) 3:45.50
Men's 400-yard medley relay: UNC (A) 3:20.98


OLD DOMINION

After day one action at the Gamecock Invitational host by the University of South Carolina, the ODU men's swimming and diving squad stands in seventh place, while the ODU women's team ends day one in eighth.
 
On the men's side, North Carolina leads the field, followed by host South Carolina and Duke.
In the men's 200 free relay, the Monarchs' "A" team, consisting of Chad Gangwer (Va. Beach, Va.), Steven Gifford (Springfield, Va.), Johan Lundberg (Fjaras, Sweden), and Mikael Ramkvist (Bjarred, Sweden) took 12th. They finished the relay in a time of 1:25.91. The Monarchs' "B" squad took 17th in the event. The team of Kevin Latimer (Newport News, Va.), Sean Frye (Springfield, Va.), William Shults (Roswell, Ga.), and Jason Brame (Lynchburg, Va.) clocked in at 1:29.85.
 
In the 200 IM, a pair of Monarchs were in the "C" finals. Mikael Ramkvist was the top finished in the third finals heat of the event with his time of 1:55.15, placing 17th overall. Johan Lundberg finished 23rd swimming to a time of 1:57.37.
 
The 400 medley relay saw the ODU "A" men placed ninth. The team of Mikael Ramkvist, Johan Lundberg, Kevin Latimer, and Chad Gangwer collectively hit the wall for a time of 3:27.95. The ODU "B" squad of Bryan Russell (Prince George, Va.), Kristian Ramkvist (Bjarred, Sweden), Sean Frye, and Steven Gifford finished in 19th place with a time of 3:33.48.

On the women's side, the Tar Heels lead the competition followed by Duke and East Carolina.
In the women's 200 free relay, the Lady Monarchs' "A" squad placed 15th. The team of Agata Nowak (Gorzow, Poland), Carrie Goodman (Glen Allen, Va.), Emma Forbes (Peekskill, N.Y.), and Madeline Stiles (Fairfax, Va.) swam to a time of 1:39.90. The Lady Monarchs' "B" squad of April Barrientos (Va. Beach, Va.), Ashley Lushsinger (Va. Beach,Va.), Sara McLaren (Va. Beach, Va.), and Lauren Johnson (Baltimore, Md.) took 17th with their time of 1:41.01.
 
In the 200 IM, Madeline Stiles placed 22nd logging at ime of 2:08.70.
The 400 medley relay saw the ODU "A" women take 11th. The group of April Barrientos, Lauren Fiskus (Yorktown, Va.), Agata Nowak, and Madeline Stiles completed the event with a finals time of 3:54.48. The "B" team of Emma Forbes, Allyson Nold (Waterloo, Ill.), Jessica Hubert (Newport News, Va.), and Carrie Goodman took 23rd in a time of 4:05.97.


SOUTH CAROLINA

South Carolina freshman Michael Flach turned in the fastest time in the nation so far this year in the 500-yard
freestyle to lead the Gamecocks in the first day of preliminaries at the second annual Gamecock Invitational.

Flach, a freshman from Manakin-Sabot, Va., posted a time of 4:22.78, well under the NCAA 'B' cut time for the Gamecocks' first
provisional time of the season. He defeated last year's event winner, Chip Peterson of North Carolina, by a full five seconds.  It was
three seconds faster than the nation's top time coming into this weekend, a 4:25.56 by Michigan's Charles Houchin. Peterson also
earned a 'B' cut with a time of 4:27.78. Fellow freshman Brooks Ross also advanced to the championship final with a time of 4:35.30,
finishing eighth overall.

The Gamecock men will also have half the field in the 200 individual medley championship final with Bobby Cave (1:52.76),
Dominique Lendjel (1:53.08), James Crawford (1:53.10) and Andy Atzhorn (1:53.61) advancing. Chris Kelly (1:54.02), Alex Fitton
(1:54.08) and Collin Kaden (1:54.94) advanced to the consolation final in the event, while Ryan Connolly (1:56.96) will swim in the
'C' final.

Three Gamecocks qualified for the finals in the men's 50-yard freestyle, with Armin Hornikel turning in a 21.20 to earn the fifth seed.
However, he was forced to scratch for the evening's finals due to a class conflict. David Livsey (21.27) and Andrew Seiler (21.36)
also earned their way into the championship final. Brett Sexton (21.52), Rory Grigull (21.53) and Josh Klotz (21.54) earned spots in
the 'C' final.

On the women's side, senior Sharntelle McLean was third overall in the 50 free with a time of 23.44, earning a spot in the
championship final. Bridget Halligan (24.15) and Kristina Delp (24.48) swam their way into the consolation final.

Junior Claire Thompson earned a spot in the 500 freestyle championship final with a time of 4:57.77. Christine Thompson (5:02.40),
Meghan Brockington (5:04.08) and Jordan Gibbs (5:04.11) will swim the consolation final. In the 200 IM, Megan Sparks just missed
the 'A' final by five-hundredths of a second, earning the ninth seed and a spot in the consolation final with a 2:07.59. Whitney Avers
(2:09.74) earned a spot in the 'C' final.

Finals get underway at 6 p.m. at the Carolina Natatorium. Admission is free, and live results are available through sportstiming.com.