In a see-saw battle that came down to the final event of the day, the Seattle University men’s swim team won the 200 freestyle relay to pull out a dual-meet victory over Simon Fraser University, 131-125, Saturday afternoon at the Connolly Center Pool.
On Senior Day, it was two seniors who brought home the victory, as Douglas Pizac (Salt Lake City, Utah) and Tomas Mendez-Beck (Hillsboro, Ore.) anchored the 200 freestyle relay, joining with Bart Wanot (Federal Way, Wash.) and Tanner Schelling (Boise, Idaho) to defeat the Clan by 21/100ths of a second with a time of 1:24.93.
The relay capped an extraordinary day for Pizac, who also won the 200 freestyle with a season-best mark of 1:44.06 and the 500 freestyle in 4:50.05. Schelling picked up a victory in the 50 freestyle with a time of 21.03 seconds, the best mark of the season by any Redhawk, while Wanot earned a two-second victory in the 200 backstroke with a time of 1:52.10, also a season-best performance.
“I am really proud of the way the team responded today after a slow start,” Seattle U head coach Craig Nisgor said. “After the first break, they came out on fire and did not let up. Doug went after it in all of his races today, Tanner had an extraordinary day, and several of the other guys came through despite coming off a tough week of practice and weight-training.”
Despite Simon Fraser winning eight of 14 events, the Redhawks were able to accumulate points with their depth. Wanot finished second in the 100 backstroke in a season-best time of 50.79 seconds, while Gabe Wheeler (Round Rock, Texas) touched the wall second in the 100 breaststroke in 59.98 seconds, followed by Connor Webb (Hood River, Ore.) in third place in 1:00.13.
Kyle Moline (Mercer Island, Wash.) led a 2-3-4 finish for Seattle U in the 200 butterfly with a time of 1:53.30, while Webb and Wheeler switched positions in the 200 breaststroke, with Webb finishing second in 2:09.00, followed by Wheeler in third place in 2:10.03. Schelling finished a half-second behind Simon Fraser’s Hans Heyer in the 100 freestyle with a mark of 46.93 seconds, and Mendez-Beck was out-touched by Ciaran McDonnell in the 100 butterfly by 8/100ths of a second, posting a time of 51.38 seconds.
The meet-opening 200 medley relay was also decided by a half-second margin, as Wanot, Wheeler, Mendez-Beck, and Schelling finished second with a season-best time of 1:33.94. Chris Weinert (Gresham, Ore.) finished first in the 1650 freestyle with a time of 16:51.45, followed by Mark Langston (Elk Grove, Calif.) in 17:14.65.
Before the meet, seniors Ali Abadi (Edmonds, Wash.), Mendez-Beck, Nicolas Morrell (Bend, Ore.), Pizac, and Kieran Schaefer (Sweet Home, Ore.) were recognized for their contributions to the Redhawk swim program over the past four years.
Seattle University (2-6) closes the dual meet season against BYU next Saturday, Feb. 1, starting at 12 noon at the Connolly Center Pool.
Many members of the Seattle University women’s swim team posted personal-best times Saturday afternoon, but the Redhawks fell just short to Simon Fraser University, 141-120, at the Connolly Center Pool.
Blaise Wittenauer-Lee (Portland, Ore.) continues to lead the way in her freshman season, winning three individual events, starting with a close victory in the 100 breaststroke by 7/10ths of a second with a time of 1:05.17. She cruised to a win in the 200 breaststroke by over three seconds in 2:20.45, and then established close to the same margin of victory in the 200 individual medley with a mark of 2:07.17.
After finishing second in the 100 backstroke by just a quarter of a second with a time of 58.83 seconds, tying her season best, Carlee Bock (Bellingham, Wash.) won the 200 backstroke in 2:05.51, the second-best mark in school history. Bock also led off the 200 medley relay, joining Wittenauer-Lee, Jane Liggett (Portland, Ore.), and Nicole Doi (Pleasanton, Calif.) for a second-place finish in a season-best time of 1:48.37.
Liggett came close to her personal best in the 200 butterfly with a time of 2:06.75 and then did establish a personal record in the 100 butterfly with a mark of 57.48 seconds, finishing in second place in both events. Doi moved into Seattle U’s top ten times list in the 100 freestyle with the eighth-best mark at 53.39 seconds in a runner-up finish, and then she led off the 200 freestyle relay, teaming with Melissa Randolf (Everett, Wash.), Caroline Van Maren (Bellevue, Wash.), and Stephanie Bayless (Spokane, Wash.) for a season-best mark of 1:39.14 to finish in second place.
Bethany Gehrke (Lynnwood, Wash.) led a 1-2 finish in the 500 freestyle with a winning time of 5:13.03, with Emma Foster (Clancy, Mont.) touching the wall in second place in 5:14.86. Foster also established the eighth-best time in program history in the 1650 freestyle, finishing in third place with a mark of 17:56.24. Gehrke also finished in third place in the 200 freestyle in 1:59.13, just behind teammate Kristin Hoffman (Mercer Island, Wash.) in second place with a mark of 1:58.94.
“The women had a great meet, but Simon Fraser just had a little more firepower today,” Seattle U head coach Craig Nisgor said. “For people such as Jane, Carlee, and Nicole to post lifetime-best swims after an especially-hard week of practice and weight work just shows how much heart this team has.”
Before the meet, seniors Whitney Dean (Campbell, Calif.), Doi, and Melanie Frey (Seattle, Wash.) were recognized for their contributions to the Redhawk swim program over the past four years.
Seattle University (1-12) will compete on an intrasquad basis next Saturday, Feb. 1, starting at 12 noon at the Connolly Center Pool before preparing for the Western Athletic Conference Swimming and Diving Championships in San Antonio, Texas, Feb. 26-March 1.
