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Denison Leads Heading Into Final Day of NCAC's

The Denison University men's and women's swimming & diving squads hold the top spots on their respective leaderboards following day three of competition at the 2013 North Coast Athletic Conference Swimming & Diving Championships. The Big Red men won three events on the evening to stand atop the standings with 1,111.5 points, while the DU women have accumulated 1,162 points after winning four events on Friday night.

On the men's side, Kenyon sits in second with 1,065 points, followed by DePauw (679.5), Wabash (434.5), Wooster (377), Wittenberg (362.5), Allegheny (320), Oberlin (308), Ohio Wesleyan (292) and Hiram (132). The Kenyon Ladies dropped to second place with 1,153.5 points, followed by DePauw (630.5), Wooster (526), Wittenberg (504.5), Allegheny (484), Oberlin (339), Ohio Wesleyan (274.5) and Hiram (168).

The Big Red men opened the night strong by establishing an NCAC record in the 200 medley relay after reaching the wall first with an NCAA 'A' cut time of 1:28.97. Additionally, DePauw and Kenyon also met 'A' cut standards in the event with times of 1:30.13 and 1:30.22, respectively.

DePauw captured its first NCAC men's title in school history in the 100 butterfly as sophomore Casey Hooker (Rensselaer, IN/Rensselaer Central) touched the wall first and automatically qualified for the national meet with a time of 48.77. In addition, Denison freshman Andrew Rich (McMurray, PA/Peters Twp.) and Kenyon senior Curtis Ramsey (Wilmington, DE/Charter School of Wilmington) also qualified for the national meet in the 100 fly with times of 48.96 and 49.31, respectively.

Kenyon sophomore Austin Caldwell (Loveland, OH/Loveland) touched the wall first in the 200 freestyle with an NCAA 'A' cut time of 1:37.87, while the Denison duo of junior Carlos Maciel (Recife, Brazil/Colegio Marista Sao Luis) (1:37.94) and junior Sean Chabot (Washington, MI/Stoney Creek) (1:38.23) also posted national qualifying times in the event.

DU again topped the field in the 100 breast with sophomore Damon Rosenburg (Leesburg, VA/Heritage) posting an NCAA 'A' cut time of 55.45. In the final men's individual event of the night, Kenyon senior Jon Rooker (Forest Grove, OR/Forest Grove) touched the wall first with a national qualifying time of 49.43, while DU senior Quinn Bartlett (Berwyn, PA/Conestoga) also posted an A cut time of 49.67.

The men's competition on the night concluded in dramatic fashion as Kenyon swam the fastest time in conference history in the 800 free relay with an NCAA 'A' cut time of 6:38.30, narrowly edging out Denison which finished second and also qualified for the national championships with a time of 6:38.56.

The DU women were victorious in the night's opening event with an NCAA 'B' cut time of 1:43.79 in the 200 medley relay.

Big Red sophomore Michelle Howell (Albuquerque, NM/Albuquerque Acad.), who set the NCAC record in the 200 IM on Thursday evening, followed that performance up with another conference record in the 400 IM, this time touching the wall  first with an NCAA 'A' cut time of 4:21.42.

Kenyon got back on top of the podium in the 100 butterfly as senior Hannah Saiz (Plattsburgh, NY/Plattsburgh Sr.) earned the NCAC title with a national championship qualifying time of 54.74, while KC sophomore Hannah Cooper (Houston, TX/Memorial) also booked her ticket to the national meet in the event with a time of 55.27.

Denison junior Natalie Lugg (Woodbury, MN/Woodbury) was a double winner on the night as she swam the second leg on the winning 200 medley relay before touching first in the 100 breaststroke with an NCAA 'B' cut time of 1:04.96.

The final women's individual event of the evening saw two freshman post NCAA regional qualifying scores on the one-meter board as Denison's Kelly Frazier (Troy, MI/Seaholm) won the event with 438.65 points and Kenyon's Maria Zarka (Kanoehe, HI/Kalaheo) was second with 417.45 points.

The KC Ladies closed out the evening with a strong swim as the 800 freestyle relay team comprised of Saiz, freshman Haley Townsend (Greenwood, IN/Center Grove), junior Hilary Yarosh (West Chester, PA/Unionville) and freshman Mariah Williamson (Bothell, WA/Bothell Sr.) surpassed the NCAC record and automatically qualified for the national meet with a time of 7:26.75.

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