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Westminster Continues to Lead PAC Races

The Westminster College men's program saw its lead at the 2014-15 Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Swimming & Diving Championships swell from 29 points after Thursday's action to 129 points following the completion of Friday's championship races.

The Titans have totaled 553.5 points through 13 championship events, leading defending conference champion Grove City College, who remains in second place with 424.5 points.

Saint Vincent College is in third place with 330 points, followed by Washington & Jefferson College in fourth with 319 points and Bethany College in fifth with 89 points.

The PAC Championships are being held in conjunction with Grove City's 25th annual James E. Longnecker Swimming and Diving Invitational and the ninth annual Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) Championships at the James E. Longnecker Competition Pool. Longnecker Pool has been the home of the conference's swimming and diving championships since 1990.

This year's event marks the 52nd anniversary of the PAC Men's Swimming and Diving Championships.

Saturday's preliminary heats for all events will begin at 10 a.m. with event finals scheduled to get underway at 5:30 p.m.

Westminster kicked off the evening by claiming the school's third-straight PAC title in the 200 medley, finishing with a NCAA Division III B-cut time of 1:32.30. Members of the relay included junior Austin Karper (Carlisle, Pa./Carlisle), junior Matthew Baurle (Jeannette, Pa./Penn Trafford), freshman Brad Kolesar (West Mifflin, Pa./West Mifflin) and senior Steven Brooks (Boardman, Ohio/Boardman).

Westminster sophomore Dan Pletz (Venetia, Pa./Peters Township) won his second-straight PAC title in the 200 IM, posting a finals time of 4:10.18. Pletz finished behind Penn State Behrend's Nick Kost (4:05.90), who won the Longnecker Invitational title.

Baurle won his third-straight conference crown in the 100 breast with a B-cut time of 56.13 in the finals. His time would have also qualified him for the Division III Championships in 2014.

Brooks claimed his third-straight PAC title in the 100 back with a Longnecker Pool record time of 49.35. The time was also good for a B-cut and would have qualified him for last season's Division III Championships in the event.

The Grove City 4x800 free relay closed out the evening by winning the event for the first time since the 2011 championships. The Wolverines posted a winning time of 6:55.69. Members of the squad were sophomore Jeremy Kim (Frederick, Md./New Life Christian), sophomore Josiah Vehrs (Fresno, Calif./Homeschooled), senior Jim Bossert (Colorado Springs, Colo./Pine Creek) and sophomore Drew Nosbisch (Monroeville, Pa./Gateway).


The Westminster College women's program will enter the third and final day of the 2014-15 Presidents' Athletic Conference (PAC) Swimming & Diving Championships with a four-point advantage over reigning seven-time league champion Grove City College after the conclusion of Friday's championship finals.

The Titans used a pair of individual titles and one relay championship to gain the edge on the Wolverines after both programs were tied with 228 points following Thursday's championship races.

Westminster leads the way with 523 points and is followed by Grove City with 519 points. Saint Vincent Washington & Jefferson College currently sits in third place with 290 points, followed by Saint Vincent College in fourth place with 279 points, Chatham University in fifth place with 188 points and Bethany College in sixth place with 128 points.

The PAC Championships are being held in conjunction with Grove City's 25th annual James E. Longnecker Swimming and Diving Invitational and the ninth annual Allegheny Mountain Collegiate Conference (AMCC) Championships at the James E. Longnecker Competition Pool. Longnecker Pool has been the home of the conference's swimming and diving championships since 1990.

On Saturday, preliminary heats for all events will begin at 10 a.m. with event finals scheduled to get underway at 5:30 p.m.

Westminster got things going on Friday by claiming the 200 medley relay with a winning time of 1:48.48, snapping Grove City's five-year run on the event title. The Titans last claimed the league crown in the 200 medley relay in 2009. Members of the relay included junior Kelsey Reott (Butler, Pa./Slippery Rock), sophomore Samantha Tower (Export, Pa./Franklin Regional), senior Rebecca Mobley (Gibsonia, Pa./Pine-Richland) and senior Marina Rozick (Pittsburgh, Pa./North Allegheny).

After a second-place finish in the 100 breast last season, Tower won this year's title with a time of 1:05.60.

Grove City senior Lauren Cassano (Venetia, Pa./Peters Twp.) earned her fourth-straight PAC championship in the 100 back, posting a winning time of 58.44.

The Wolverines pushed their PAC win streak in the 800 free relay to eight-straight seasons, closing out Friday's championship finals with a winning time of 7:43.22. Relay members included Cassano, senior Tori Baker (Fairfax, Va./Robinson), sophomore Megan Smith (Tyler, Texas/Kolbe Academy) and sophomore Abby Jank (Worthington, Ohio/Thomas Worthington).

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