Three University of Connecticut women’s swimmers tallied two individual wins, while UConn won both diving events, as the Huskies defeated Dartmouth, 166-134, on Saturday afternoon at the Karl Michael Pool. With the win, Connecticut finished its dual meet schedule with a record of 5-1 on the year.
For the second straight week, the UConn divers finished on top. Junior Taryn Urbanus (Quincy, Mass.) led the charge early on, winning the first event of the day (3-meter) with a score of 322.50, and sophomore Alexandra Butera (Havertown, Pa.) made it a sweep for Connecticut after capturing first place in the 1-meter (282.90).
The Huskies occupied the top-four spots in both events, starting in the 1-meter, where Butera finished second (276.75) ahead of sophomore Michelle Kalupski (Chicago, Ill.) and freshman Monica Marcello (Middletown, Conn.), who rounded out the remaining top spots. In the 3-meter, Kalupski tallied a second-place finish with a score of 271.12, while Marcello finished third (267.97) and Urbanus was fourth (258.67).
On the swimming side, seniors Katy Munzenmaier (Lake George, N.Y.) and Chinyere Pigot (Miami, Fla.) and junior Laura Hyland (Southport, England) each notched two individual victories. Munzenmaier topped all swimmers in the 200-yard freestyle (1:52.22) and the 500-yard freestyle (5:01.43), and Pigot earned a sweep of the freestyle events. She won the 100-yard freestyle after swimming it in 52.11, and she followed that up with a victory in the 50-yard freestyle (23.90).
Hyland continued her strong junior campaign, recording wins in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:07.45) and the 200-yard breaststroke (2:23.80). Other individual winners on Saturday were sophomores Sophie Nothnagle (Victor, N.Y.) and Tara O’Prey (Ridley Park, Pa.). Nothnagle touched the wall in 2:05.38 to win the 200-yard butterfly, while O’Prey earned first place in the 100-yard butterfly after posting a time of 58.68.
The Huskies return to action on Feb. 7 when they host the UConn Open, set for 11 a.m. at the Wolff-Zackin Natatorium. Admission is free for the event that will be Connecticut’s final home meet of the season.
University of Connecticut sophomore swimmer Chris Girg (Burbach, Germany) won a team-best two races, while junior diver John Brice (Bala Cynwood, Pa.) swept the diving events for the second straight week in a losing effort for UConn, which fell to Dartmouth, 177-123, on Saturday. With the loss, the Huskie finished their dual meet season with a final record of 4-2.
Girg was magnificent against the Big Green, winning the 200-yard butterfly (1:53.13) before topping all swimmers in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 4:40.47. The sophomore standout also finished third in the 200-yard freestyle (1:42.75), and he was part of the Connecticut team that swam to a third-place finish in the 400-yard freestyle relay after completing it in 3:14.15.
Brice proved to be a dominant force on the boards once again, starting in the 1-meter event. He finished first with a score of 313.95, and he followed that up with another top finish in the 3-meter (343.88.) The junior has now won each of his last six diving events, dating back to last weekend.
Sophomore Spencer Beaulieu (Portland, Conn.) collected two fourth-place finishes on the day, scoring a 262.12 in the 1-meter and a 298.88 in the 3-meter. Freshman Daniel Kinney (Middletown, Conn.) also placed in the two events, finishing fifth (247.20) in the 1-meter and sixth (275.93) in the 3-meter.
Other UConn swimmers to tally individual wins on Saturday were juniors Mike Lennon (Williston Park, N.Y.), and Greg Baliko (Fanwood, N.J.) and sophomore James Donlevy (Lake Grove, N.Y.). Lennon beat everyone in the 1000-yard freestyle after posting a time of 9:50.61 to finish just ahead of senior Sawyer Franz (Pine, Colo.), and Baliko won the 100-yard breaststroke after swimming it in 59.12.
Donlevy had a great swim in the 50-yard freestyle, finishing first with a time of 20.35. Senior Felix Samuels (London, England) was third (21.58) in the race, while freshman Jack Malespini (Rocky Hill, Conn.) finished sixth with a time of 22.25.
The Huskies return to action on Feb. 7 when they host the UConn Open, set for 11 a.m. at the Wolff-Zackin Natatorium. Admission is free for the event that will be Connecticut’s final home meet of the season.
