Virginia Men Rally, Women Solid in Win over Hokies
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CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. – The Virginia men’s swimming and diving team rallied to come back and beat Virginia Tech thanks to strong performances in the final three events, while the Cavalier women put up a solid showing en route to a win over the Hokies Wednesday at the Christiansburg Aquatic Center.
The Cavalier men finished with a 161-139 win while the women earned a 166-132 victory.
The teams combined to set six pool records in Christiansburg, site of the 2012 Atlantic Coast Conference Championships.
The women were led by sophomore Charlotte Clarke, who set a pool record in her 100 backstroke victory, finishing in 55.16. She went on to claim the 200 backstroke in 1:59.92 and led off the victorious 200 medley relay team. Senior Kelly Flynn was also an individual double event winner in the 100 breaststroke (1:04.41) and 200 breaststroke (2:19.14) and joined Clarke on the 200 medley relay.
“I thought the women were methodical, steady, strong and displayed their versatility and depth,” head coach Mark Bernardino said. “Mentally, they were focused the entire meet. It was a good performance and a lot of them swam well given the pressures of training that we put them under.”
Sophomore Taylor Grey set two pool records, including the 200 breaststroke (2:01.59) and 400 individual medley (3:56.57). He also won the 100 breaststroke in 56.69 in leading the men to a come-from-behind victory.
“Taylor was spectacular the whole meet,” Bernardino said. “He single-handedly kept us in it and was so instrumental in our fortunes today. I like the way we found a way to fight from behind. We rallied as a team in the final two thirds of the meet and showed a little bit of pride. I certainly compliment Virginia Tech – they swam their hearts out.”
After trailing big early, a 1-2 performance by the Cavalier men’s divers put them within four points, 134-130, heading into the final two events. Senior Briggy Imbriglia claimed first place honors on the 1-meter board, earning a score of 338.17, while freshman JB Kolod was second with a mark of 333.07.
“We lacked enthusiasm and energy in the first segment of the meet,” Bernardino continued. “We got a huge momentum boost from our divers. I feel that was a huge moment for Coach MacDonald and our divers to be under that pressure and really come through the way they did.”
Grey then led a 1-2-3 Virginia finish in the 400 individual medley. He was followed by teammates David Ingraham (3:58.89) and Bradley Phillips (3:58.97). The Cavaliers went 1-2 in the 800 freestyle relay, the final event of the night, to secure the win.
The team of Parker Camp, David Karasek, Brady Fox and Phillips collected first place and set a pool record in 6:44.82. Jan Daniec, Tom Barrett, Jonathan Buerger and Peter Geissinger touched second in 6:45.09.
The women got things started with a victory in the 200 medley relay. Clarke, Flynn, Meredith Cavalier and Emily Lloyd touched in 1:42.36.
Sophomore Caroline Kenney led a 1-2-3 Virginia finish in the 200 freestyle, finishing with a time of 1:50.02. She was followed by Rachel Naurath (1:50.16) and Meredith Perdue (1:51.19). Naurath was the team’s highest finisher in the 1000 freestyle with a time of 9:48.56 to finish second.
Another Cavalier sweep came in the 200 butterfly. Freshman Alison Haulsee paved the way with a winning time of 2:00.29. Classmate Sarah White (2:00.39) was second and redshirt freshman Megan Fox was third (2:02.39).
The sprint freestylers put up a strong showing in the 100 freestyle, led by Lloyd’s winning time of 51.64. Perdue (52.28) and Dana Nessler (52.46) placed second and third, respectively.
Freshman Ellen Williamson was second behind Clarke in the 100 backstroke and Erika Stewart placed fourth (56.54). Cavalier went on to win the 50 freestyle (23.70) while Lloyd was third (23.84).
The fourth Virginia sweep of the night was the 200 backstroke, where Cavalier placed second behind Clarke in 2:02.43, and freshman Emily Dicus was third in 2:03.23.
Kelly Offutt, Sarah White and Williamson were the top Virginia finishers in three more events. Offutt was second in the 500 freestyle (4:51.15), Williamson took second in the 100 butterfly (55.21) and White was second in the 400 individual medley (4:19.19).
Daniec also set two pool records with victories in the 500 freestyle (4:29.46) and 1000 freestyle (9:20.63to help lead the Cavalier men. Phillips was second in both events; he touched in 4:31.64 in the 500 freestyle and 9:25.37 in the 1000 freestyle.
The Cavaliers put up a 1-2-3 finish in the 200 freestyle. Parker Camp led the way with a winning time of 1:39.50 and was followed by Karasek (1:40.71) and Buerger (1:42.18).
Barrett picked up a victory in the 100 freestyle with a mark of 45.47. He went on to finish second in the 50 freestyle (20.89) while Geissinger took third (21.18).
Virginia swept the 200 breaststroke event, led by Grey’s first-place performance. Nick Montes de Oca took second (2:05.92) and Serge Gould was third (2:06.46).
The Cavaliers second behind the Hokies in the 200 medley relay to open the meet. Jack Murfee, Grey, Geissinger and Barrett teamed up to finish in 1:31.83.
Brady Fox turned in a second-place finish in the 200 backstroke (1:48.41). On the 3-meter board, Imbriglia was second overall with a score of 366.45 and Kolod took third (366.15).
Both Cavalier squads are back in action with road meets at Duke (Jan. 20) and North Carolina (Jan. 21).