GETTYSBURG, Pa. – The Ursinus College women's swimming team is one step closer to a three-peat.
The Bears broke three conference records to open up a sizeable lead after the first day of competition at the Centennial Conference championships, a strong opening statement in their quest for a third consecutive league crown. Ursinus posted a team score of 254 points, with Gettysburg (166) in second and Franklin & Marshall (158) in third.
Sophomore Sydney Gundersen, freshman Clara Baker, senior Micaela Lyons, and senior Corinne Capodanno broke a conference record in the 200 free relay, posting a time of 1:36.01 in the A final to eclipse the mark established by Gundersen, Lyons, Capodanno, and junior Alexandra Hemp at last year's championships; Lyons' split of 23.52 was the fastest in school history. Hemp teamed with sophomore Katherine Porter, sophomore Margaret Leitz, and sophomore Reney Hess to place second in the B final (1:39.08), a quarter of a second behind Gettysburg's group.
Freshman Kathryn Longenecker placed eighth in the A final of the 500 free with a time of 5:12.29, breaking her previous personal best of 5:13.25 that she established in the prelims; it was the fifth-fastest clocking in school history. Fellow rookies Caroline Powell (5:13.84) and Gabriella Timuscuk (5:16.66) were fourth and seventh, respectively, in the B final; their times moved them up to seventh and ninth all-time at Ursinus.
Freshman Peyten Lyons made history in the 200 IM, where Ursinus had three of the top four finishers and racked up 55 points. The record-setting rookie touched the wall in 2:06.54 to earn a gold medal and break the previous conference mark set by junior teammate Katie Pielmeier a year ago; Lyons matched Pielmeier's old record (2:07.70) in the prelims and notched a Division III B cut. Pielmeier, meanwhile, picked up the silver medal with a 2:08.78, and freshman Samantha Kegel moved all the way up to fourth with a personal best of 2:10.46, good for fifth in school history. Sophomore Olivia Tierney finished seventh in the B final (2:13.33).
The Bears piled up 69 more points in the 50 free thanks to two more medals and a 2-3-4-5 effort in the A finals, led by Micaela Lyons' 24.31. Gundersen was third in 24.46, Baker was right behind at 24.48, and Capodanno placed fifth with a 24.54. Hemp finished second in the B final (24.67).
Ursinus closed the evening session with a bang, as the 400-yard medley relay A team of Peyten Lyons, Tierney, Baker, and Capodanno won gold with a conference and championship record time of 3:50.30, shattering the previous CC mark of 3:53.20 registered by Micaela Lyons and the other three last season and marking a Division III B cut. It was more than four seconds ahead of Gettysburg's runner-up unit, which actually outpaced the old championship record set a year ago by Swarthmore. The Bears' B team – consisting of Kegel, Pielmeier, Porter, and Lyons – won its finals heat with the third-best time of the evening (3:57.53).
The Bears turned in four of the top five preliminary times in the 50 free, with Gundersen leading the way after a second-place clocking of 24.18, just .05 ticks off the pace set by McDaniel's Syd Knadler. Baker was third in 24.33, and Micaela Lyons (24.44) and Capodanno (24.48) were separated by even less in fourth and fifth, respectively.
Ursinus returns to the pool for the next round of prelims tomorrow morning at 10 a.m, which will feature the 400 IM, 100 butterfly, 200 freestyle, 100 breaststroke, and 100 backstroke.
