The Ohio State women and South Carolina men took home the 2015 FGCU Classic team trophies.
Ohio State Press Release:
Ohio State won its first meet of the season on Saturday, taking home first place in the inaugural FGCU Eagle Swimming Classic.
The Buckeyes entered the day with a slim one-point lead over Florida Gulf Coast, but quickly relinquished that advantage after the first event of the day, the 400 IM relay. The Eagles would sweep that event and the next as well to jump out ahead of Ohio State by 16.5 points.
Lindsay Clary notched the first victory of the day for Ohio State in the 500 freestyle; her time of 4:52.75 in the championship final was nearly six seconds faster than anyone else. Taylor Vargo’s victory in the 200 breaststroke (2:16.24) helped close that gap between the Buckeyes and FGCU.
In the next two events, the 100 backstroke and 100 freestyle, an Ohio State swimmer finished ahead of an FGCU swimmer in both the championship and consolation finals, earning critical points in the Buckeyes’ favor. In the 100 backstroke Zulal Zeren earned a win in the consolation final with a time of 55.82. Liz Li (50.04) and Annie Jongekrijg (51.58) finished in first place in the 100 freestyle, putting Ohio State just a half-point behind hosts FGCU.
In the second-to-last event of the meet, Clary (2:02.72) and Meg Bailey (2:04.87) won the 200 IM to put their team back on top. In the final event of the weekend, the 200 freestyle relay, the Buckeyes won both heats to clinch their first team win of the season.
South Carolina Press Release:
The South Carolina swimming and diving team concluded the FGCU Classic in Ft. Myers, Fla. on Saturday afternoon with the Gamecock men claiming the title with 427 points and the women tallying 346 points for a third place finish.
South Carolina finished with a 13-point lead over second-place Grand Canyon University on the men’s side. The Gamecocks won six of the day’s nine events. Buffalo (353) and FAU (297) placed third and fourth, respectively, to complete the men’s standings. Ohio State took first place in the women’s competition with 410 points while FGCU (394.5) and South Carolina (346) rounded out the top three. Rutgers (297.5), Buffalo (258) and Grand Canyon (247) finished fourth through sixth, respectively.
Sophomores Akram Mahmoud and Nils Wich-Glasen each won two events on the second day of the meet. Mahmoud claimed first place in the 500 freestyle (4:25.02) and 200 butterfly (1:49.27) while Wich-Glasen’s wins came in the 200 breaststroke (2:03.19) and 200 IM (1:51.79). Senior Kevin Leithold also secured a pair of wins for the Gamecocks with first-place finishes in the 100 IM (51.02) and 100 freestyle (45.37).
Sophomore Tomas Peribonio won both consolations heats he raced in, taking first in the 100 IM (51.55) and 200 IM (1:52.81). Freshman Cody Bekemeyer won the consolation heat of the 500 freestyle (4:29.84) and junior Jonathan Boland placed first in the consolation heat of the 100 freestyle (45.49).
In the 200 backstroke Bryce Kananowicz finished second with a time of 50.90 while Caleb Tosh took second in consolation heat (52.32). Freshman Fynn Minuth added a second place finish in the consolation heat of the 200 butterfly (1:52.14).
Freshman Paige Maynard had another big day for the Gamecocks as she won the 200 butterfly with a time of 2:00.25. Fellow freshman Emma Barksdale added a pair of third-place finishes in the 100 IM (58.18) and 200 breaststroke (2:20.31). Also racing in the 200 breaststroke, sophomore Kersten Dirrane finished first in the consolation heat (2:20.55).
Sophomore Taylor Worrell touched the wall third in the 500 freestyle (5:01.88) and junior Megan Carlson placed fourth in the consolation heat (5:06.18).
FGCU Press Release:
Trailing by one point heading into the second day of the FGCU Classic, FGCU swimming started the day strong but could not hold off Ohio State, finishing second in the six team invite with 394.5 points; Ohio State won the invite with 410 points. The Eagles posted five season-best times on Saturday, Oct. 3.
“Being down by one point at the end of Day One was a success but the girls got on it early and we were able to take the lead,” said head coach Neal Studd. “We had some close races we just missed out on. The girls stepped up and swam really fast but in the end Ohio State just had a bit too much. We still ended up about 50 points ahead of South Carolina which is really exciting. Overall it was a pretty good two days of racing for us.”
The Eagles began the day trailing 191-190 but quickly gained the lead following the first of nine events held during the morning and early afternoon hours. Barbara Caraballo (Ponce, Puerto Rico/Indian River/Newsome HS) picked up the first of her two event wins, leading off the Eagle 400 medley relay team. Caraballo was joined by Katie Armitage (Bushey, United Kingdom/Queens School Bushey), Yee Ching Wong (Hong Kong, China/Diocesan Girls’ School) and Katie Latham (Deal, Kent, United Kingdom/Sir Roger Manwood’s School), setting a new season-best time of 3:45.02 to win the event. Sandra Wilk (Lexington, Ky./Paul Laurence Dunbar HS), Evita Leter (Paramaribo, Suriname/Doral Academy), Christina Kaas Elmgreen (Charlottenlund, Denmark/Ordrup Gymnasium) and Hannah Burdge (Stuart, Fla./Martin County High School) also touched the wall in first in the B Final, but had to come from behind after trailing in the third leg.
The early morning success continued for the Green and Blue with Wong and Caraballo picking up wins in the 100 individual medley, a new event in the 2015-16 season. Caraballo was in third position halfway through the event, but picked up her pace in the final 50 yards to pull even with Morgan Pfaff from Rutgers as the two finished in a tie, touching out in 57.94 seconds.
Melissa Marinheiro (Davie, Fla./West Broward High School) coasted to a win in the 500 freestyle, finished just shy of her season-best time at 5:00.56. Her performance was followed by Lani Cabrera’s (Bridgetown, Barbados/St. Ursala’s Secondary School) second place finish while posting a team season-best time of 4:58.19. Following the 500 freestyle, the Eagles led 277.5-262.
Armitage kept FGCU in front with a second place finish in the 200 breaststroke, touching the wall in 2:19.26. The day reached its halfway point with Marcella Marinheiro (Davie, Fla./West Broward High School) and Wilk posting personal season-best times in the 100 backstroke as the Eagles gap back to the Buckeyes decreased to 5.5 points. Marinheiro’s time of 59.87 seconds placed her fifth in the heat while Wilk touched out in 56.89 seconds, good for fourth.
Needing a strong performance in the 100 freestyle, the Eagle received just that from Latham and Burdge, both finishing second in their respective heats. Latham’s time of 50.76 seconds was a season-best while Burdge’s 51.87 was a personal best for the 2015-16 season and just short of her career personal best.
Elmgreen swam past Cara Norris of Ohio State late in the B final to win the 200 butterfly with a time of 2:03.40 and Wong attempted to follow suit but was edged out by the Buckeyes. Wong finished third with an FGCU season-best 2:02.48. Armitage and Caraballo finished second in their respective heats in the 200 individual medley as Ohio State took the lead for the first time in the day by 3.5 points.
In the day’s final event, the 200 freestyle relay, the Eagles finished third in the B final, touching the wall in 1:37.86. The A final saw the Eagles record its fifth season-best time of the day, as Latham, Cabrera, Kristen Julien (San Fernand, Trinidad and Tobago/St. Stephen’s College) and Burdge touched out in 1:34.23 to finish second.
The Eagles begin the dual meet portion of their schedule on October 17 against UNF as FGCU continues its quest for a seventh CCSA title.
Rutgers Press Release:
After participating in its first competitive event of the 2015-16 season, the Rutgers swimming team concluded the Florida Gulf Coast University Classic on Saturday fourth with a score of 297.5.
“We had another great day as a group and saw a lot of improvement and fast times for this time of the year,” said head coach Petra Martin. “I’m proud of the whole group for stepping it up, racing with confidence and having a great attitude. We learned a lot this weekend but also improved a lot and had a great time together.”
Fellow Big Ten Conference member Ohio State finished first at the invite with team total of 410, followed by the host Eagles with a score of 394.5. South Carolina rounded out the top three with a team mark of 346.
Full video highlights from the entire FGCU Classic can be found here.
After an impressive first day, senior Joanna Wu (Kent, Wash.) continued her strong start to the season. Wu collected another NCCA B qualifying standard time, this time with a first-place mark of 54.94 in the 100 backstroke. Wu also produced a qualifying standard time of 1:58.71 in the 200 backstroke on Friday.
“Having Wu secure two qualifying marks this weekend is a real confidence builder with all the things we have worked on this summer and the last few weeks with her,” Martin said.
Senior Morgan Pfaff (Red Lion, Pa.) contributed the Scarlet Knight’s other individual title, tying for first in the 100 individual medley with a time of 57.94. Pfaff also delivered a third-place finish in the 400 individual medley on Saturday, hitting the wall at 4:28.67.
Junior Rachel Stoddard (Hillsborough, N.J.) contributed her second, second-place finish during weekend action, completing the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:03.47.
In relay action, RU produced third-place times in the 200 and 400 medley relay. Pfaff, Stoddard, Wu and junior Meghan Kiely (Mountain Lakes, N.J.) hit the wall third in the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:43.74. The quartet then collected a time of 3:47.53 to in the 400 medley relay to finish out Saturday’s competition.
Rutgers returns to action beginning Friday, Oct. 16, when the Scarlet Knights host the Sonny Werblin Invitational at the Rutgers Aquatic Center.
Buffalo Press Release:
The Bulls performed well at the first day of the two-day Florida Gulf Coast Classic. On the day the women’s team had six sixth-place finsihes or better, including a second-place finish by Jess Powers in the 200 yard freestyle. Her time of 1:52.64 was .28 better than the next finish and earned the Bulls 13 points.
Buffalo finished well in the women’s 200 yard medley relay with a time of 1:45.11. The team of Mallory Buha, Sharne Tiller, Julia Box, and Megan Burns finished in fifth place and scored 20 points. In the 50 freestyle Megan Burns earned 12 points with her third-place finish by swimming a time of 23.34. Julia Box’s time of 57.50 and sixth-place finish in the 100 yard butterfly earned the Bulls nine points.
Mallory Buha finished in sixth and earned the Bulls nine points in the 200 yard backstroke with a time of 2:09.09. Alexis Valedon swam 1:07.58 in the 100 yard backstroke earning a sixth-place finish and nine points towards the team score. Sarah Baxter, Box, Eve Kosten, and Burns swam 3:30.72 in the 400 yard freestyle relay. They finished in fifth place and earned 20 points for Buffalo.
The men’s team had seven top-three finishes, including Itai De La Vega’s first-place finish in the 100 yard breaststroke. His time of 55.29 earned Buffalo 16 points and is less than a minute slower than his school-record time of 54.20 accomplished last season.
In the 200 yard medley relay Buffalo earned 24 points with their third-place finish. Hudson Carroll, De La Vega, Mason Miller and Antonio Lanzi swam the event in a time of 1:31.72, which was only 1.84 seconds behind the second-place relay team from South Carolina.
Billy Patrum impressed in the 200 yard freestyle finishing the race in third with a time of 1:42.23. Antonio Lanzi’s time of 20.95 in the 50 yard freestyle was good enough for a third-place finish and 12 points towards the team score. Buffalo men’s swimming sat third, while the women’s team was in fifth place after the first 16 events (day one).
On Saturday Buffalo returned to the pool for the conclusion of the Florida Gulf Coast Classic.
In the first event of the day, University at Buffalo’s men’s swimming 400 meter freestyle relay team consisting of Lanzi, Eric Jensen, Jonathan Ekas, and Miller finished in third place with a time of 3:04.71. They also accumulated 24 points towards the team’s overall score. The women followed with a fifth place finish in the 400 yard medley relay with a time of 3:52.26 and earned 20 team points before the men’s 400 medley relay team finished third. Hudson Carroll, De Le Vega, Miller, and Lanzi swam the event in a time of 3:25.71 to earn 24 team points.
Baxter swam to a sixth-placed finish in the 100 yard IM with a time of 59.49. Powers powered through in the 500 yard freestyle to finish in fourth with a time of 5:01.91 and only .03 seconds behind Taylor Worrell of Sotuh Carolina who finished in third.
Charles Barry swam well in the 500 yard freestyle to earn a third-place finish in a time of 4:40.51. Garrett Clarke’s time of 2:04..89 in the men’s 200 yard breaststroke earned a second-place finish and 13 team points. Caroll swam a time of 53.75 to finish third in the 100 yard backtroke, while Megan Burns narrowly missed out on second by .12 second to finish in third with a time of 50.84.
Mason Miller’s fourth place finish in the 100 yard freestyle helped the team earn 11 points, before Julia Box earned 11 points herself in the 200 yard butterfly in her fourth-place finish.
Overall, UB finished in fifth place and 258 points on the women’s side, while the men’s score of 353 earned them a third-place finish. The FGC Classic was a good opportunity for the Bulls to swim against top teams in the country and challenge themselves as their season continues throughout the Fall and Winter months.
Grand Canyon Press Release:
The Grand Canyon University men’s and women’s swimming teams competed in their first meet of the season this weekend at the Florida Gulf Coast Invite. The men’s team placed second with 414 points, while the women’s team finished sixth.
After the GCU men led the team scores at the end of the opening day, South Carolina came back on day two to earn the first place victory with a score of 427. The Ohio State placed first on the women’s side with 410 points, followed closely by Florida Gulf Coast at 394.5
For the men’s squad, the field included South Carolina, Buffalo, and Florida Atlantic, while the women squared off against programs such as South Carolina, Ohio State, and Rutgers. Each team traveled twelve swimmers and entered two per event.
The men’s team picked up seven first-place victories during the event.
In the 200-yard medley relay, Mark Nikolaev, Youssef Elkamash, Daniil Antipov, and Illya Glazunov finished with a time of 1:29.51 for first place. The team picked up another title in the 400-yard medley relay (3:17.76). Nikolaev and Glazunov teamed up with Mazen Elkamash and Jacob Lambros for a second place finish in the 400-yard free relay.
Lambros, Glazunov, Mazen Elkamash, and Tanner Brotherton won the title in the 200-yard free relay with a time of 1:21.79.
Glazunov continued his success in the 50-yard free for the title (20.64) and finished second in the 100-yard free with a time of 45.11. Antipov won the 100-yard butterfly (48.24) and finished second in the 200-yard free (1:39.65), 200-yard butterfly (1:49.40), and 500-yard free (4:35.75). Nikolaev had a first place finish in the 100-yard back (49.44).
Iegor Lytvenok posted a time of 1:50.49 in the 200-yard back for the title. Additionally, he recorded second place finishes in the 400-yard IM, 100-yard IM, and 200-yard IM.
In a tough field of competition, Iryna Glavnyk posted a pair of second-place finishes for the women’s squad. The first was in the 200-yard back with a time of 1:59.81 and the second was in the 100-yard back with a time of 55.61. She also earned a fourth place finish in the 100-yard IM. Jovanna Koens earned a fourth place finish in the 50-yard free with a time of 23.75.
FINAL WOMEN’S SCORES
1) Ohio State: 410
2) FGCU: 394.5
3) South Carolina: 346
4) Rutgers: 297.5
5) Buffalo: 258
6) Grand Canyon: 247
FINAL MEN’s RESULTS
1) South Carolina: 427
2) Grand Canyon: 414
3) Buffalo: 352
4) Florida Atlantic: 297
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