The No. 21 West Florida women’s swimming and diving team moved closer to No. 8 Delta State on the second day of the New South Intercollegiate Swimming Conference Championships at the DSU Aquatic Center on Thursday. The Argonauts won four of five events and now trail DSU in the team standings by a score of 390-365. Henderson State sits in third place with 246 points after the second day, followed by Ouachita Baptist (227) and Emmanuel (Ga.) (126), in that order.
“Today was a special day,” said UWF head coach Andrew Hancock. “We got our first conference championships in the history of our program, and hopefully there will be many more. We did it in commanding fashion, winning four of the five events that were offered today. That really got everyone’s attention, and hopefully we can keep it going as we move on.”
Diver Josie McKee (Canton, Ohio/Malone) made history in the early session of the day, winning the 3 Meter event to mark the first individual conference champion in UWF history. McKee posted a score of 460.95, barely missing her own school record of 462.60. UWF placed first and second in the event, as Meghan Zets (Grovetown, Ga./Grovetown HS) was right behind McKee with a score of 416.15.
“It was really exciting to win today,” said McKee. “It was all-in-all a great day, and my teammate Meghan got second place so it was even better. It’s awesome to be a part of the first individual conference win. To be able to win anything is great, but it’s special to be the first. I’m really excited to be here with the rest of the girls and cheering everyone on.”
The Argos’ next two wins came in the evening session, starting with Anna-Marie Macht’s (Markkleeberg, Germany/Darton State) win in the 200 IM. Macht swam a time of 2:03.69, marking a new NSISC record, DSU Aquatic Center record and school record.
Macht led a dominant group of Argonauts in the 200 IM, as Cheryl Corvo (Fort Walton Beach, Fla./Florida Gulf Coast) finished third, Paulina Szydlo (Wroclaw, Poland/Gimbasket HS) fourth and Jennifer Starck (Hunstville, Ala./Huntsville HS) fifth. Corvo (2:08.09) and Szydlo (2:08.47) both posted NCAA B-cut qualifying times in the race. Corvo had also posted a B-cut time in the morning prelim at 2:08.03.
“It was an amazing feeling to win today,” said Macht. “I did not expect to swim my best time today, but I just felt really strong at the end. When I touched the wall and saw the time, I couldn’t believe it.”
Peggy de Villiers (Somerset West, South Africa/Drury) was the next individual conference champion for UWF, as the sophomore placed first in the 50 Free. Just like Macht in the 200 IM, de Villiers’ time in the 50 Free (23.30) was a new NSISC record, DSU Aquatic Center record and school record.
“I was really happy with the win,” said de Villiers. “It’s a great confidence boost leading into nationals. I’m happy with my time. I would have liked to have gone a little faster, but I got a new conference record and pool record so I’m really happy with that.”
Emily Mitchell (Allen Park, Mich./Darton State) placed fourth in the 50 Free with a time of 24.35. Her prelim time of 24.12 during the morning session was an NCAA B-cut qualifying time.
The Argos finished the day on a high note, winning the 200 Free Relay with a time of 1:35.42. The winning team included Mitchell, de Villiers, Carla Robles (Miami, Fla./Coral Reef HS) and Macht. The win marked the first relay conference championship in school history.
“It was incredible to share that experience with my teammates, the girls that I train with every day,” explained de Villiers.
During the 500 Free, the Argos’ highest finisher was Karisa Kostecki (Lithia, Fla./Newsome HS) in fifth place. The freshman swam a time of 5:10.87, and she was followed by teammates Phoebe Briant (Gainesville, Fla./Gainesville HS) in sixth and Nicole Harder (Lutz, Fla./Sunlake HS) in seventh. In the 500 Free prelims, Savannah Antonetz (Lake Charles, La./Barbe HS) competed as an exhibition and swam a school record time of 5:09.89.
The third day of the championship will begin Friday morning at 10 a.m. with prelims in the 400 IM, 100 Fly, 200 Free, 100 Breast and 100 Back. The 1 Meter diving event will also begin during the early session on Friday.
