University of Maryland, Baltimore County men extended their lead with 303 points after the second day of the 2015 Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association (CCSA) Swimming and Diving Championships contested Thursday at the University of Georgia’s Gabrielson Naatorium.
Incarnate Word sits second in the standings with 263 points. Gardner-Webb holds the third spot with 241 points followed by NJIT with 132 points. VMI (109 points) and Howard University (58 points) round out the field.
Jonas Gutzat of UMBC won the 500-yard freestyle, posting a mark of 4:22.17, a meet record and NCAA “B” qualifying time and. Connor Hennessy of Incarnate Word finished in second-place with an NCCA “B” cut time of 4:23.03 and UMBC’s Robert Breen finished third with a time of 4:27.64.
In the 200-yard individual medley, UMBC’s Nikola Trajkovic touched in at 1:46.66 for first-place. IWU’s David Moore finished second with a time of 1:47.00, followed by GWU’s Nathan Lile in third-place at 1:48.04. All three times qualify as NCAA “B” cut times.
Gregor Spoerlein of UMBC won the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 20.26. NJIT’s Brian Capozzola and UIW’s Scott Jonsson finished second and third, respectively, with times of 20.28 and 20.54.
For the second consecutive year, UMBC’s Ryan Green won the three-meter dive with a score of 342.65. IWU’s Brendan Schaffer finished second with a score of 302.20, while Pak Lam Wong of UMBC finished third with a score of 269.55.
The GWU team of Nathan Lile, Connor Bos, Tyler Gomez and Nicholas Dyer won the 200-yard freestyle relay, touching in at 1:20.68. The IWU team of Alex Brouwer, Scott Jonsson, Mehdi El Hazzaz and Jorge Escarcega finished second with a time of 1:21.33 and UMBC (Trevor Doll, Lauri Kaei, Robert Breen and Gregor Spoerlein) touched third with a time of 1:21.61.
The CCSA Championship will continue with the final day of action on Friday, Feb. 21 at 10:00 a.m., starting with the 400-yard individual preliminaries. The event finals for day three will start at 6:00 p.m.
The Florida Gulf Coast women are in first place with 626 points after the second day of the 2015 Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association (CCSA) Swimming and Diving Championships contested Thursday at the University of Georgia’s Gabrielson Natatorium.
Liberty is second with 461 points and Incarnate Word is third with 407 points. Georgia Southern is fourth with 383.5 points, while Gardner-Webb is fifth with 340.5 points. Campbell University is in sixth with 191 points and UNC Asheville is in seventh with 174 points. Behind UNC Asheville is North Florida with 152 points and VMI is ninth with 119 points. North Carolina A&T sits in 10th place with 114 points, followed by Howard University with 68 points.
In the 500-yard freestyle, FGCU’s Lani Cabrera took the victory with a time of 4:51.5, while teammate, Nina Schiffer, finished second with a time of 4:52.41. In third-place, touching in at 4:53.37 was Lauren Oglesby of GWU.
IWU’s Alona Kyselova won the women’s 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:00.28, a meet and CCSA record, as well as a NCAA “B” cut time. GWU’s Lili Toth and London Schumacher finished second and third, respectively, with times of 2:02.28 and 2:202.50.
Winning the 50-yard freestyle was FGCU’s Emma Svensson, breaking her previous meet and conference record with a time of 21.98. Elania Lanson of GSU finished in second-place with a time of 22.88. Liberty’s Kendal Hough finished third with a mark of 22.93. All three times qualify as NCAA “B” cut times.
In the one-meter diving event, Kali Lents of UIW defended her title with a score of 291.05. Cayla Collins of FGCU tallied 275.10 points to finish in second place. Incarnate Word’s Mallory Draper finished third with a total score of 243.95.
In the 200-yard freestyle the Florida Gulf Coast team of Emma Svensson, Kristin Julien, Becky Derogatis and Kira Toussaint finished in first place with a new meet and CCSA record of 1:29.78, a NCAA “B” cut time. In second place was Liberty (Kendall Hough, Rachel Hoeve, Cori Gary and Megan Babcock) with a mark of 1:30.29, while GSU’s (Kylee Parsons, Christina Moran, Kaylyn Thomas and Elaina Lanson) touched third with a time of 1:32.11.
The CCSA Championship will continue with the third day of action on Friday, Feb. 20 at 10:00 a.m., starting with the 400-yard individual medley preliminaries. The event finals for day three will start at 6:00 p.m.
Georgia Southern
The Georgia Southern Swimming and Diving team took to the Gabrielsen Natatorium pool Thursday for Day Two of the Coastal Carolina Swimming Association Championships and came up big. Day Two featured preliminaries and finals in the 500 Free, 200 Individual Medley, 50 Free, 1 Meter Diving, and 200 Free Relay.
After Day Two, the Eagles sit in 4th place with 383 points. Florida Gulf Coast leads with 626, Liberty is 2nd with 461, and Incarnate Word is 3rd with 407 points
"It was a really good day," said Head Coach Nate Kellogg. "We set ourselves up well with how we did during the morning and really put in the work there to be able to enjoy tonight and have fun and race."
Kylee Parsons opened the finals in the 500 Free and set a new school record with a time of 4:54.29 and a 6th place finish. In the "B" Final, Amber Juncker was 9th touching in 4:58.79, and Mae McWhorter finished 14th with a time of 5:05.40 Lani Cabrera from Florida Gulf Coast won the event with a time of 4:51.50.
"Kylee got us fired up with her performance in the 500 free and bettered her previous school record that she set last year by over half a second," commented Kellogg.
In the 200 IM, Amber Cortazzo set a school record during the preliminaries with a time of 2:05.30 to qualify 14th. In the finals, Cortazzo swam the same event in 2:05.49 to finish 13th. Teammates Madison Lichtefeld and Becca Alves finished in 14th and 16th respectively with times of 2:06.97 and 2:08.12. Incarnate Word's Alona Kyselova won the event in 2:00.28.
Elaina Lanson set a school record in the 50 free preliminaries touching in 22.95 to qualify for the finals in 3rd. It was a school record that stood for exactly 8 hours, as Lanson bettered the mark to finish 2nd in the 50 Free Finals with a time of 22.88. Teammate, Christina Moran was 12th with a time of 23.44. Emma Svensson of Florida Gulf Coast edged Lanson to finish 1st in 21.98.
Continued Kellogg, "Elaina has been waiting a long time for this. It's been a topic of conversation for 3 years and it's nice to see it finally start to happen for her."
"It was an amazing feeling," said Lanson. "I didn't think about anything during that race, I just got out there and swam and did whatever I needed to do. It's what I've been training for all year so looking up at the scoreboard after the race was just an incredible feeling."
The 200 Free Relay team of Parsons, Moran, Juncker and Lanson finished 3rd and set a school record with a time of 1:32.11 The record is a full 2.5 seconds better than the previous mark set in 2013.
Continued Lanson, "Swimming relays are my favorite events. You get to go up there with 3 other girls and the excitement and momentum that builds with your teammates – there is no other feeling like it. Those girls swam an amazing race, I was happy to be a part of it."
"That relay was just awesome with two girls going sub 23," added Kellogg. "We are really starting to put the pieces together for some truly great relays."
Diver Erin Hembree qualified for the 1 meter finals by finishing 7th in the preliminaries with 208.85 points. In the finals, Hembree scored 234.55 points to finish 7th. Kali Lents of Incarnate Word won the event with a score of 291.05. Chloe Cotter scored 180.7 points in the preliminaries but missed the finals by one spot.
"We are really proud of Erin for holding her spot and finishing 7th. The 1-meter event is her favorite and her best event, and she truly exceeded expectations. She's fired up and she has good reason," concluded Kellogg.
Liberty
Liberty moved into second place in the women’s team standings after a high-scoring second day, Thursday at the 2015 CCSA Women’s Swimming & Diving Championship.
With two days remaining in the championships, the defending champion Lady Flames are in second place with 461 points after scoring 349 points on Thursday. FGCU remains in first place with 626 points, a total which includes 152 diving points. Incarnate Word is in third, at 407, while Georgia Southern (383.5) and Gardner-Webb (340.5) are fourth and fifth, respectively.
On the day, the Lady Flames posted 14 lifetime-best swims, three NCAA B cuts, nine A finals swims and two podium finishes (one individual, one relay).
The Lady Flames took fourth, fifth and seventh in the 500 free A final, with senior Emily Duff swimming a lifetime-best 4:53.72 in the A final for fourth. Junior Kristin VanDeventer placed fifth in a season-best 4:53.89 after qualifying first in 4:54.19. Junior Hannah Wakeley took seventh with a 4:55.66 clocking. Freshman Sarah Browning came in 15th overall by swimming 5:07.34 in the B final.
Liberty junior Victoria Tschoke swam a lifetime-best 2:02.56 in the 200 individual medley A final, pocketing her second fourth-place conference finish in this event. Freshman Prudence Rooker placed sixth in 2:03.36. Alona Kyselova of Incarnate Word won in a meet, conference-record and NCAA B cut 2:00.28. Freshman Rachel Wasko swam a personal-best 2:03.10 to place 10th overall. Junior Ranndi Grubbs went 2:05.43 for 17th, while Danielle Boothe’s 2:09.81 placed 24th.
Junior Kendall Hough swam a then lifetime-best 22.93 (NCAA B cut) to place third in the 50 free A final. Seniors Cori Gary and Meghan Babcock tied for fifth at 23.03, while Rachel Hoeve finished eighth in 23.16. Freshman Kendall Hart (23.71), senior Chloe Thomas (23.85) and freshman Chelsea Pond (23.74) finished in 15th through 17th, in that order. FGCU’s Emma Svensson became the first CCSA swimmer to break 22 seconds, winning in 21.98.
Florida Gulf Coast won the 200 free relay in a conference, meet-record and NCAA B cut time of 1:29.78. Liberty placed second, as Hough, Hoeve, Gary and Babcock went 1:30.29, the second-fastest 200 free relay in program history. Hough led off in 22.92, lowering her NCAA B cut by .01.
VanDeventer posted the top qualifying time in the 500 free prelims, swimming 4:54.19. Wakeley swam a lifetime-best 4:55.61 to qualify third. Duff (5:00.24) joined VanDeventer and Wakeley in the A final with a seventh-place qualification. Browning clocked a season-best 5:04.18 in preliminary heats, making the B final with a 12th-place showing.
Rooker placed second in 200 IM qualifying, with a lifetime-best 2:02.83. Tschoke followed in sixth with a 2:03.86. Wasko swam a then personal-best 2:04.95 to make the B final in 12th position. Grubbs tied for 19th in prelims at 2:07.11, while Boothe also made the C final in a lifetime-best 2:09.09. Senior Jennifer Garzinski swam her top 200 IM time of the season, 2:10.25.
Liberty had an impressive showing in the 50 free, as Gary placed second in qualifying by tying her lifetime best (NCAA B cut 22.87). Babcock swam a B cut time of 22.97 for fourth, while Hoeve swam a lifetime-best 23.04 for sixth and Hough tied for seventh with a then lifetime-best 23.10. Hart clocked her best time, 23.47, to qualify 13th, while Thomas’ season-best 23.68 was good for 16th. Pond qualified in 17th with a lifetime-best 23.71, while Sall placed 27th overall in a best time of 24.34. Freshman Rachel Rippey swam a personal-best 23.98 while classmate Sydney Archuleta also swam a best time, 25.32.
In one-meter springboard diving, freshman Madi Long scored 184.95 points as an exhibition athlete.
UMBC
The UMBC men's swimming and diving team took four the five events contested on the day to retain first place with 303 points. Incarnate Word sits in second with 263 points going into the third day of competition.
The Retrievers opened up with Jonas Gutzat (Lappersdorf, Germany/BBS Nuernberg) winning the 500 free with a time of 4:22.17. Not only was the time good enough for the win, he broke the school and meet record, while also qualifying for an NCAA B cut. Nikola Trajkovic (Zrenjanin, Serbia/Zrenjaninska Gimnazija) earned a gold medal in the 200 IM with a time of 1:46.66. The mark earned him an NCAA B cut as well.
Gregor Sporlein (Bamberg, Germany/Clavius Gymnasium) kept the winning ways going by setting a new school record in the 50 free. Gregor touched the wall in 20.26 to break his record of 20.29 he set last season. The other victory for the Retrievers came on the diving boards, as senior Ryan Green (Ellicott City, Md./Centennial) won the 3 meter dive, successfully retaining his crown with a score of 342.65. Fellow classmate Pak Lam Wong (Hong Kong/Kowloon Technical School) placed third with a score of 269.55.
The last event of the day was the 200 free relay. The quartet of Trevor Doll (Crownsville, Md./Old Mill), Lauri Kaei (Harjumaa, Estonia/Tallinn Secondary Science), Rob Breen (Danvers, Mass./St. John's Prep), and Sporlein took third with a time of 1:21.61. Gardner-Webb took first in the event, touching the wall in 1:20.68.
UMBC sits in first with 303 points. Incarnate Word is right behind the Retrievers with 263 points. Gardner-Webb (241 points), NJIT (132 points), VMI (109 points), and Howard (32 points) round out the six team field.
VMI Men
Connor McMahon broke the program's 50 freestyle record, pacing the VMI men's swimming and diving team at day two of the Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association (CCSA) championships, contested Thursday in Athens, Ga. As a team, VMI currently sits in fifth place in the event standings.
McMahon, a senior competing in his final CCSA Championship, finished ninth overall and won the B final with a time of 20.87 seconds. He was the first Keydet to ever go under 21 seconds in the event, but did not hold that distinction for long, as teammate John Kelly finished 10th overall in 20.91.
Both swimmers also were a part of the 200 free relay team that finished fifth (1:25.32).
In addition, teammate Matt Johnson was 15th in the 500 free, touching the wall in 4:54.45.
The Keydets currently sit in fifth overall with 109 points, 51 points ahead of Howard. UMBC leads with 303 markers, while Incarnate Word is second with 263. Gardner-Webb sits third (241) and NJIT rounds out the squads, currently fourth with 132 points.
VMI Women
The VMI Keydet women's swimming and diving team set three school records, with freshman Natalie Rivas playing a role in two as the squad competed at day two of the Coastal Collegiate Swimming Association (CCSA) Championships in Athens, Ga. on Thursday. The Keydets are ninth in the overall team standings.
Rivas broke the marquee sprinting record, posting a 24.93 second effort in the 50 free to shatter the old mark and finish 42nd overall. She is the first VMI woman to go under 25 seconds in the event, as the old record was 25.33. Rivas also swam anchor on the 200 medley relay time trial team, which put up a time of 1:55.59 to set a new school record as well.
McKenzie Raber was the other Keydet to set a new VMI best on Thursday, finishing 28th with a 5:19.37 effort in the 500 free.
In addition, senior Heather Magill was sixth in the 1-meter diving event with a score of 236.65 points. Magill has qualified for the NCAA Zone Diving Championships, so her career may continue.
The Keydets have 119 points thus far, putting them five points up on North Carolina A&T and 51 ahead of Howard. Florida Gulf Coast leads Liberty in the overall standings, 626-461.
The CCSA Championships resume Friday with the day three trials, set to go underway at 10 a.m.
