WEST CHESTER, Pa. – The Ursinus College women's swimming team sandwiched a pair of sensational relays around a massive collection of season bests on Day 1 of the Golden Rams Classic at West Chester on Friday.
Senior Sydney Gundersen, junior Clara Baker, freshman Sophie May, and junior Peyten Lyons came within a tenth of a second of the school record in the 200 free relay, taking second place in a sizzling 1:36.11. The quartet's time is an NCAA B Cut and currently ranks ninth in Division III.
Senior Meggie Leitz, freshman Katherine Kurzinsky, senior Katherine Porter, and freshman Allison Thomas placed fourth in 1:39.44, edging the previous top time in the Centennial Conference by .15 seconds.
Sophomore Haley Sturla was the Bears' top swimmer in the 500 free, placing 13th with a mark of 5:17.47, more than 13 seconds better than her former season best. Junior Kathryn Longenecker (5:17.62) and Thomas (5:18.18) were right behind with their own season benchmarks, and freshman Rebecca Warren took more than four seconds off her collegiate best with a 5:23.32.
Freshman Katelyn Moore finished the 200 IM in 2:14.02, placing 11th overall and slicing more than three seconds off her season best. Junior Katherine Madden dropped her season record by more than five ticks with a 2:14.53, and classmate Caroline Powell took more than eight seconds off hers.
May elevated all the way to second in the CC with a 24.54 in the 50 free, where she finished sixth. Kurzinsky decreased her season best to 25.20, and fellow first-year Madison McHugh also tallied a collegiate low (26.23).
Lyons, senior Olivia Tierney, Baker, and Gundersen clocked a blazing 3:51.59 in the 400 medley relay, moving up to eighth in Division III and falling just shy of the NCAA B cut standard.
Leitz, Sturla, Porter, and May finished the event in 3:57.84 to take fourth place.
The Bears conclude the Golden Rams Classic on Sunday, with the first of two sessions getting underway at 10 a.m.