Gardner-Webb Women's Swimming Claims First Place at Relay Meet Friday Night
October 20, 2012 | Swimming
Lexington, N.C. - Gardner-Webb used wins in nine of ten swimming events to fuel a first place overall finish at the VMI/UNCA relay meet on Friday night.
The Runnin' Bulldogs scored wins over a pair of CCSA foes on Friday, winning by a 204-92 margin over UNC Asheville and by a 208-62 clip over the host team VMI.
Friday's performance by Gardner-Webb women's swimming marks their first team win of the young season.
GWU opened the night with a 1-2 finish in the 300 yd. butterfly relay, getting a first place finish from the trio of Liz Van Halsema (Charlotte, N.C.), Kaylee McCallan (Melbourne, Fla.), and Madi Dinsmore (New Ipswich, N.H.). The senior, sophomore, and freshman combined to finish with a time of 3:04.08.
The Runnin' Bulldog women kept its momentum with a win in the 300 yd. backstroke relay. A pair of freshman (Caroline Andrews - Hillsborough, N.C. - and Sarah Singleton - Elkin, N.C.) combined with sophomore Jenna Ballinger (Lexington, N.C.) to finish first in 3:03.51.
Gardner-Webb took second in the 300 yd. breaststroke relay. Seniors Michelle Palacio (Charlotte, N.C.) and Taylor Jones (Mooresville, N.C.) teamed with freshman Allie Petersen (Watkinsville, Ga.) to record GWU's fastest time in the event at 3:44.12.
Four freshmen combined to lead GWU with a first place finish in the 800 yd. freestyle relay. Kristina Nork (Parkland, Fla.), Alaina Mattix (Loganville, Ga.), Peterson, and Taylor Schwartz (Westerville, Ohio), all Runnin' Bulldog newcomers, teamed up to record a time of 8:06.80 in the event. GWU would go on to take second in the event as well, as senior Kristen Michal (Katy, Texas), freshman Christina Clayton (Brentwood, Tenn.), sophomore Kristen Ellison (Cary, N.C.) and Van Halsema finished second in 8:22.10.
Gardner-Webb also grabbed the top two spots in the 500 yd. freestyle relay. Freshman Giorgie Graves (Riverview, Fla.) and junior Emily Black (Charlotte, N.C.) teamed with Mattix and Andrews for the first place finish in 4:57.86, and junior Annie Bosacco (Front Royal, Va.) combined with Jones, Ellison, and Dinsmore to finish second with a time of 5:00.53.
A 1-2 GWU finish followed in the 400 yd. medley relay, with the quartet of Graves, Jessica Robinson (Aiken, S.C.), Faith Kempf (Sterling, Kan.) and Charity Byrum (Winston-Salem, N.C.) timing in at 4:06.48. Sarah Singleton, Palacio, Clayton, and Schwartz teamed up for second in the event with a time of 4:13.18.
Freshman Susan Ward (Abilene, Texas) led off GWU's first place 200 yd. freestyle relay, teaming with Kempf, Samantha Shelley (Wilmington, Del.), and Clayton for a time of 1:42.68 to give the Runnin' Bulldogs a win in the event.
Ellison, Graves, and Michal gave Gardner-Webb a first place finish in the 1500 yd. freestyle relay at 16:16.70. Ballinger, Nork, and Andrews followed in 16:22.50, taking second place in the event.
GWU got a 1-2 finish in the 4 x 100 I.M. relay. Van Halsema, Laurenn Singleton (Elkin, N.C.), Kempf, and Palacio took first in 4:12.90, with Van Halsema's split time (1:02.47) representing the fastest in the event. McCallan, April Niccolai (Naperville, Ill.), Mattix, and Robinson combined to finish in 4:16.42 to take second in the event.
Gardner-Webb closed the night out with a win, as Nork, Bosacco, Ballinger, and Ward finished first in the 400 yd. free relay with a time of 3:49.43.
Gardner-Webb's women's swim team turns around tomorrow to compete at the Virginia Tech Sprint Invite. Tomorrow's meet, in Christiansburg, Va., will start at 11:00 a.m. Live stats for tomorrow's Virginia Tech Sprint Invite can be followed at the link above.
