Swimming: WVU First After Day One at Invite
November 17, 2006 01:07 AM | General
November 16, 2006
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University swimming and diving team has secured first place with 477.5 points after one day of competition at the Terrapin Cup Invitational on Thursday, Nov. 16, at the University of Maryland in College Park, Md.
The men ranked first with 268 points and the women ranked second with 209.5 points through six events. The women are five-tenths behind first place University of Kansas.
“I think if we keep in this direction we will have a good chance to win this invitational on both sides,” says third year coach Sergio Lopez.
The women got the Mountaineers’ successful night rolling with a first place finish in the 200 free relay. Sophomore Rachel Fedyk and freshmen Kayla Andrews, Kitti Veisz and Stephanie Shupe earned the victory with a time of 1:33.75, the second fastest time in school history.
The men followed the women with their own first in the 200 free relay. Senior Kyle Williams, junior Nick Delic, sophomore Andrew Langenfeld and freshman Zoltan Povazsai comprised for the winning time of 1:19.65, the second fastest time in school history and a NCAA “B” Standard time.
Sophomore Lindsay Largo swam the fourth fastest time in WVU history with her 11th place finish in the 500 free (4:57.56). Povazsai went on to win the 500 free with a time of 4:26.37, the second fastest time in school history.
The Mountaineers earned two second places in the 200 IM. Veisz pulled down the points for the women with a time of 2:03.40, seconds short of a new school record but a qualifying NCAA “B” Standard time, while sophomore Michael Walker came through for the men with a time of 1:51.03, also the second fastest time in school history.
The 50 free also brought much success for WVU. Andrews finished the quickest for the women, earning a second place finish and a NCAA “B” Standard with a time of 23.23. Both Langenfeld and Delic competed strong for the men, earning second (20.17) and third (20.39), respectively. Langenfeld’s time qualified as a NCAA “B” Standard and was just short of the school record.
The women’s squad finished their night of competition strong, setting a new school record in the 400 medley relay. Veisz, Shupe, Andrews and freshman Morgan Callaway finished first in the event with a time of 3:44.23. This new record breaks the old record (3:46.86) established on Oct. 19 against Penn State. This time also qualifies as a NCAA “B” Standard.
The men were also earned a NCAA “B” Standard in the 400 medley relay. Walker, Delic, Langenfeld and Povazsai finished the race in first with a time of 3:16.05.
In diving action, sophomore Brandon Robinson finished 18th in the 1 meter dive with a score of 139.45 points. Junior Erica Pfeiffer placed 13th in the 3 meter dive with 196.95 points.
All told, the Mountaineers finished the first day with one new school record, the 11th of the season, eight NCAA “B” Standard times, and 19 WVU all-time top 10 performances.
“Looking at our team, I am very excited to see that we have depth on both sides,” says Lopez. “Most importantly, we are dominating the relays, and those are our best chances to qualify for the NCAA Championship.”
Competition will continue on Friday, Nov. 17, at the Eppley Recreation Center Natatorium. Preliminary action is set to kick-off at 10 a.m.
