University of Connecticut sophomore swimmer Christine Pedersen (Vinterbro, Norway) and senior sprinter Chinyere Pigot (Miami, Fla.) each won two events in a losing effort Sunday for the UConn women’s swimming and diving team, which fell to Penn, 169-131. The Huskies dropped to 2-1 on the season with loss.
Junior diver Taryn Urbanus (Qunicy, Mass.) had an extremely productive day on the boards, as she swept both events, starting in the 3-meter. She totaled a score of 290.63 to beat Penn’s Cassidy Golden (249.97), and finished her day with the top score in the 1-meter (259.27). Sophomore diver Michelle Kalupski (Chicago, Ill.) finished second (257.25) in the 1-meter and third (246.23) in the 3-meter.
Pedersen’s first victory of the day came in the 100-yard backstroke, which she won with a time of 57.00. She followed up that with another strong showing the 200-yard backstroke, topping all swimmers after completing it in 2:03.61. In the 200-yard medley relay, Pedersen earned second place honors, teaming up with junior Laura Ruttan (Stittsville, Ontario), sophomore Tara O’Prey (Ridley Park, Pa.) and Pigot to finish the event in 1:45.23.
“It was a great meet against a very good Penn team,” UConn swimming coach Bob Goldberg said. “The women saw several outstanding performances.”
Pigot once again won multiple races at a meet this season, sweeping the freestyle events. She finished first in the 50-yard freestyle (23.44), and tallied another victory in the 100-yard freestyle, which she swam in a time of 51.90.
The other Husky to record an individual win was freshman Emily Parillo (Phillpston, Mass.) She placed first in the 400-yard IM with a time of 4:29.19.
Connecticut is back in action Nov. 21 when it travels to Kentucky to participate in the Louisville Invitational. The meet will run from Nov. 21-23 with races going on throughout each day.
The University of Connecticut men’s swimming and diving team suffered its first loss of the season Sunday, falling to Pennsylvania, 172-125. With the result, the Huskies drop to 2-1 on the season.
Junior diver John Brice (Bala Cynwood, Pa.) had a sensational day on the boards for the Huskies, sweeping both events in the meet. Brice won the 3-meter with 289.88 points and he finished his day with another top score of 290.18 in the 1-meter. Freshman Jeffrey Aselin (Riverside, Conn.) also had a productive day, recording two third place finishes in the diving events. He posted a score of 263.47 in the 1-meter and started his day out totaling 272.55 for the 3-meter.
Multiple UConn swimmers posted sold times on Sunday, starting with sophomore James Donlevy, who won the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 21.37 and finished third in the 100-yard freestyle (46.92). In the final event of the day, the 400-yard freestyle, Donlevy teamed up with sophomore Kevin Konarski (Lindenhurst, N.Y.), junior Jeff Magin (Brookfield, Conn.) and senior Felix Samuels (London, England) to earn first place honors in the event, swimming it in 3:06.44.
Fellow sophomore Chris Girg (Burbach, Germany) was the other Husky to win an individual race against the Quakers, as he saw a first place finish in the 500-yard freestyle (4:32.73). The UConn standout also earned second place in two events, finishing as the runner-up in the 200-yard butterfly (1:52.59) before completing the 200-yard freestyle in 1:42.28.
“It was a great meet against a very good Penn team,” UConn swimming coach Bob Goldberg said. “We are just where we want to be getting ready for our mid-season meet.”
The Huskies are back in action on Nov. 21 for the Louisville Invitational. The event will feature three days of races at the Mary T Meagher Aquatic Center.
