In a meet where the difference between first and second place was only nine points at one time, Saint Francis U was able to hold on to its lead and win its fourth consecutive NEC Swimming and Diving Championship. The Red Flash scored 732.5 points over the course of four days to hoist the championship trophy once again.
Wagner scored 715 points to place second, while Bryant rounds out the top three with 669.5 points. Central Connecticut was fourth with 648, Mount St. Mary's fifth with 263, Sacred Heart sixth with 169 and St. Francis Brooklyn 142.
There was a three-way tie for Outstanding Swimmer of the Meet, as Bryant's Casey Ostrander (Yarmouthport, MA/Barnstable), Saint Francis U's Elise Lofgren (Molnlycke, Sweden/Hule) and Wagner's Amanda Lucia (Easthampton, MA/Easthampton) and each scored captured two individual titles and scored 57 points. This was the fourth time Ostrander earned the award in her career. Lucia was also named the Rookie of the Meet for her efforts. Wagner's head coach Colin Shanahan was voted NEC Swimming Coach of the Year.
Central Connecticut's Jessica Goldman (Newington, CT/Newington) was named Diver of the Meet after winning both the one-meter and three-meter events, and her coach Mike Trueworthy was named 2013 NEC Diving Coach of the Year
Goldman made it two-for-two after winning the three-meter dive with a score of 254.50, which was good enough to break the NEC 6-dive record of 248.40 set in 2011. Mallory Lee (Newark, CA/Moreau Catholic) of Wagner was second with 226.60 and the Blue Devils' Kate Dwyer (Waterbury, CT/Sacred Heart) was third with 205.80.
In the longest race of the meet, the 1650 freestyle, freshman Haley Fournier (Ave Maria FL/Palmetto Ridge) of Saint Francis U earned the gold mdeal after swimming to a time of 16:55.95. She was the only swimmer to break 17 minutes on the night. Her teammate and 2012 champion Megan Collins (Monroeville, PA/Oakland Catholic) placed second with a time of 17:06.26 and CCSU's Kasey Chilton (Chelmsford, MA/Chelmsford) was third in 17:19.09.
Bryant saw a 1-2 finish in the 100 backstroke, as defending champion Ostrander won the event for the fourth time in her career in a time of 2:01.68 and Elizabeth Schauer (Pelham, NY/Pelham Memorial) finished right behind Ostrander in second 2:02.33. Allison Rasile (Branford, CT/Branford) of CCSU was third in 2:02.95
A one-hundredth of a second seperated first place from second place in the 100 freestyle, as Wagner's Sarah Mendendez (Land O'Lakes, FL/Wharton) just touched out Saint Francis U's Alicia Ford (Whitney Point, NY/Whitney Point) with a time of 51.05. Ford, the defending champion, took the silver in 51.06. The Red Flash's Danyel Johnson (Dansville, NY/Dansville) finished third in 51.27.
The 200 breaststroke came down to the final 15 yards, as Bryant's Molly Smith (Belmont, MA/Belmont) was able to pass the Red Flash's Lofgren and swim to a winning time of 2:19.23 Lofgren led for most of the race but touched just after in 2:20.09, and her teammate Cat Rogers (Nokesville, VA/Seton) was third in 2:21.31.
Lucia won her second event of the meet, the 200 butterfly in a time of 2:02.38. Mount St. Mary's Erin Regan (Ft. Washington, PA/Upper Dublin), the defending champion, finished second in 2:02.88 and Libby Francis (Dundee, Scotland/Grove Academy) of Saint Francis was third in 2:03.74.
Bryant broke its second relay conference record of the meet, as the team of Ostrander, Kristie Chan (San Francisco, CA/Abraham Lincoln), Taylor DeBever (Denver, CO/Regis Jesuit) and Kaitlin Buckley (Duxbury, MA/Duxbury) placed first with a time of 3:25.14 to lower the mark set by their own program last season by over a second. The Red Flash's team of Johnson, Lofgren, Rogers and Ford were third in 2:17.15 to secure their overall win. Wagner was third with a time of 3:27.26.
Final Team Results
1. Saint Francis U - 732.5
2. Wagner - 715
3. Bryant - 669.5
4. Central Connecticut - 648
5. Mount St. Mary's - 263
6. Sacred Heart - 169
7. St. Francis Brooklyn - 143
