Looking for fun in the water this weekend? Then head over to the Aquatics Center at the Michael P. O'Brien Athletics & Recreation Center for the 2014 Capital Athletic Conference Men's and Women's Swimming Championships on February 21-23. It is the ninth consecutive season that the Olympic-sized pool at St. Mary's College of Maryland is serving as the host site.
2014 CAC Championship site
Come Friday morning, swimmers and fans from five CAC institutions – Frostburg State University, Marymount (Va.) University, University of Mary Washington, Salisbury University and York College of Pennsylvania – will be converging on the St. Mary's City campus.
The University of Mary Washington enters the 2014 Capital Athletic Conference Men's and Women's Swimming Championships as a favorite to repeat - again. The Eagles have been dominant since the conference began competing in 1991 and look to continue their streak of conference championships in this year.
The CAC Championship will begin with trials on Friday (2/21) at 10:00 a.m., and have six competitive sessions over three days. Sunday, following the annual Senior Recognition celebration, the final six events will lead to the crowning of the 2014 championship teams.
The Eagles have won 13-straight CAC men's swimming championships (19 of 23 since 1991) and all 23 women's titles. Last year, UMW scored more than 1,000 points in both men's and women's team standings for the first time in CAC history and won both championships by more than 350 points over second-place finisher St. Mary's College of Maryland.
In 2013, the Eagles advanced five men to the NCAA Championship meet and finished 19th overall with 47 team points, including All-America honors for junior Alex Anderson and the 400 medley relay team. The UMW women's team also took a handful of swimmers to nationals and finished 38th in the team standings, including a pair of top-15 finishes by senior Amber Kerico.
CAC Championship host St. Mary's, along with York College of Pennsylvania and Marymount (Va.) University, have given Mary Washington the most competition at the championship meet over the past few years. All three teams have some quality individuals to challenge for medalist honors as well as improved depth throughout the lineup compared to previous seasons.
Salisbury University and Frostburg State University will also impact the final order of standings with some strong individual and relay performances.
Here is a quick look at each team heading into the 2014 championship:
Frostburg State first-year head coach Justin Anderson has guided his Frostburg State men's swimming team to a pair of wins and will be led at the league championships by the squad's only two seniors. Jesse Gregory has captured eight individual wins this season and is currently 15th in the CAC in the 400 IM (4:42.69), while Vincent Faiella has two wins and is 12th in the league in the 1,650 freestyle (21:31.35).
The Frostburg State women's swim team posted seven wins in 2013-14 under first-year head coach Justin Anderson, who has his Bobcat squad in prime position to improve on last year's sixth-place finish. Junior Kaitlyn Donch has posted 13 wins on the season and currently holds the seventh fastest times in the CAC this year in the 1,650 freestyle (19:02.78) and the 100 breaststroke (1:12.32). Sophomore Maci Quintanilla has four wins on the season and is 16th in the CAC in the 200 backstroke in 2:26.17.
The Mary Washington men's swim team is primed to make a run at their 14th consecutive CAC title. Junior All-American Alex Anderson leads the Eagles into the conference championships, looking to defend his title in the 50 freestyle. Anderson leads a veteran group that includes Henry Bassett, Zach Eisig, and Vance Solseth who will look to help lead the Eagles to another CAC title.
The Mary Washington women's team will look to continue their dominance in the CAC Championships. Senior All-American Amber Kerico will lead a veteran group of Eagle seniors, who are looking to leave their mark in their final CAC Championships. Sophomores Hannah Hagy, Steph Hallock, and freshman Shannon Coryell look to make an impact at this year's championships.
The Marymount men's swim team looks to improve on its fifth-place finish from a year ago behind a hard-charging group of newcomers. Matthew Essig owns top-five times in the CAC this season in freestyle events, including the second best time in the 500 freestyle. He also holds the fifth best time in the 200 backstroke and seventh best in the 400 IM. Fellow newcomer William Bryan looks to make a splash in the breaststroke events and currently holds the third best time in the 100 breaststroke and the fifth best in the 200 breaststroke. Also look for rookie Robert Klazynski to make moves in the 100 butterfly and for veterans Joseph Gardner, Matt Ward and Dennis D'Abbraccio to battle for medalist honors in the freestyle and IM events.
Marymount's women's squad will rely on an experienced roster, paired with a bevy of impressive newcomers, to improve on its third place finish from a year ago. Senior Katie Moran and junior Casey Thomas will continue to excel in the freestyle events while junior Bridget Wunderly looks to impress in the butterfly. Moran boasts the best 50 freestyle time in the CAC this season and the fourth best in the 100 free. Thomas is second in the 100 freestyle, third in the 200 freestyle and has the ninth best time in the 50 freestyle. Wunderly claims the third and fourth best times in the 100 and butterfly, respectively. Newcomer Kassidy Schmidt will also be a force in the backstroke events, holding the fourth best time in the 100 backstroke and the second best time in the 200 backstroke.
St. Mary's senior captains Jimmy Forest and Thor Petersen will look to push St. Mary's to its fifth consecutive top-3 finish. The Seahawks return five all-conference selections, including the defending 400 individual medley champion in Petersen as well as two members from last year's winning 200 medley relay in Forest and sophomore Zach Lilley. The team will also receive additional depth at the backstroke and freestyle events with the return of five-time All-CAC honoree, junior Dylan Cope.
The St. Mary's women's team will look to a group of eight returning all-conference selections to guide them at this year's CAC championships. The Seahawks are ready to make a splash in the relay events after finishing second last year in the 200 freestyle, the 400 medley, and the 800 freestyle relays.
Salisbury enters the men's conference championships with a record of 2-8, 2-3 CAC. Looking to improve on their fourth place finish last season, the Sea Gulls bring in competitive talent at all ages. Freshman Okan Eyigor leads SU into the championships with 15 gold medals in freestyle, butterfly and backstroke events. Swimming at St. Mary's in the final meet of the regular season, sophomore Will Gough claimed first in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle. Seniors Chris Franklin and James Gough head into their final conference championship after recording first-place finishes three times in individual events this season. The men also claimed five top finishes in freestyle relays through 10 meets this year.
Salisbury's women's team enters the conference championships with a record of 1-8, 1-4 CAC. Placing fifth last season, SU will look to improve this year with young, up-and-coming talent. Freshman Victoria Radcliffe paced the Sea Gulls in their 2013-14 campaign, claiming 12 top finishes in a wide array of events. Sophomore Nicki Schult enters the championship improving on her seven gold medals in the regular season last year, racing for nine thus far in various strokes. Freshmen Maggie Deering and Layne Gable arrive at St. Mary's City, Md., with two and three top finishes, respectively. Deering claimed both first-place finishes in the 100 backstroke, while Gable recorded her three in the freestyle, butterfly and individual medley.
The York men's team enters the 2014 CAC Championships coming off a successful 8-4-1 regular season campaign including a 4-1 mark in the CAC. Sophomore Kyle Walthall leads the Spartans charge as one of the conference's top breaststroker. Juniors Shane Bonner, Cody Latchford, and Bryant Hughes, and sophomore David Altobelli are four more of York's top performers. A strong freshman crew consisting of Russell Stoll, Tim McCullough, and Tim DeCoursey provide York with improved depth as they look to improve on their third-place finish from last year.
York's women's team heads into the 2014 Capital Athletic Conference championships looking to improve on last year's fourth-place finish. The Spartans are powered by seniors Megan Murphy and Kelsie Pike, juniors Lindsay Buglino, Courtney Dacheux, Sammy Greenwald and Casenya Stone. The Spartans finished the 2013-14 regular season with a mark of 5-8 including a 2-3 record in the conference.
--Courtesy the Capital Athletic Conference
