Greensboro, N.C. - Gardner-Webb recorded ten top twenty performances Friday, led by the fifth place finish by the 400 Medley Relay team of Laurenn Singleton, Charity Byrum, Giorgie Graves, and Faith Kempf, as the Runnin' Bulldog women tallied 269 points and currently stand in fifth place after day one of the All-N.C. Invitational.

Host N.C. State leads the women's standings with 469 points, followed by East Carolina (409) and Duke (336). Gardner-Webb is sandwiched between a pair of CCSA counterparts, trailing fourth place Campbell (294.5) while holding a lead over sixth place Davidson (232.5).

In its inaugural year, the All-N.C. Invitational features 14 collegiate programs from across the state of North Carolina (including Division I, Division II, and Division III programs) competing under the same roof.

"This meet is really cool because it allows us the opportunity to compete against some of the best schools in the state," said senior Liz Van Halsema. "Schools like duke and n.c. state might have that reputation of being the best around, but we love the opportunity to get up and race."

GWU opened the night with a 6th place showing in the 200 free relay. Charity Byrum, Giorgie Graves, Anna Springer, and Liz Van Halsema combined for a time of 1:39.11, with Graves' split time (24.08) representing the fastest of the night for the Runnin' Bulldogs.

Gardner-Webb also took 7th in the event. Alaina Mattix, Faith Kempf, Christina Clayton, and Laurenn Singleton teamed up to finish in 1:39.30.

Freshman Madi Dinsmore (New Ipswich, N.H.) led GWU in the 500 free, finishing 15th with a time of 5:17.39. Picking up a 21st place finish was senior Kristen Michal (Katy, Texas), who timed in at 5:26.06.

GWU picked up 12th and 13th place finishes in the 200 IM from Kempf (Sterling, Kan.) and Byrum (Winston-Salem, N.C.) respectively. Kempf, a junior, came in at 2:11.16, and the sophomore Byrum timed in at 2:11.62. Freshman April Niccolai (Naperville, Illinois) added a 16th place finish for Gardner-Webb after recording a time of 2:14.23.

Mattix, a freshman from Loganville, Ga., led GWU in the 50 free, cracking the top 10 of the event with a 9th place finish (24.79). Junior Anna Springer (Snellville, Ga.) was 15th, racing to a time of 25.10.

The Gardner-Webb women wrapped up the night with the 5th place finish in the 400 medley relay. Laurenn Singleton led off (1:00.57), Byrum swam the fourth fastest breaststroke split (1:06.55)of the night, Graves swam the second fastest butterfly split (56.94) behind only Chelsea Ye of Duke (56.66), and Kempf anchored in 54.18 to seal the top five finish.

"The night went really well," Michal commented. "It was awesome to see the freshmen swim for the first time in their collegiate careers and contribute on such a high level for us.

"Tonight was a great start to the season."

Gardner-Webb returns to the pool tomorrow morning at 10:00 a.m. Saturday's evening session is scheduled for a 5:00 p.m. start time.