Giorgie Graves Wins 100 Fly to Lead Gardner-Webb Women's Swimming to Fifth Place Finish at All-N.C. Invitational
October 07, 2012 | Swimming
Greensboro, N.C. - Gardner-Webb scored twelve Top 10 performances for the weekend, led by freshman Giorgie Graves' first place finish in the 100 fly, to finish fifth in the women's team standings at the inaugural All-N.C. Invitational.
North Carolina State finished first at the Invitational with 1,499 points. East Carolina was second with 1,285, Duke was third with 866 points, and Davidson finished in third with 735.5 points. Gardner-Webb scored a fifth place finish overall with 719 points, pulling away from sixth place Campbell (670.5) on day two.
GWU started off Saturday's morning session with a fifth place performance (1:48.53) in the 200 medley relay. Laurenn Singleton (27.89), Charity Byrum (30.36), Giorgie Graves (25.89), and Christina Clayton (24.39) combined to give the Runnin' Bulldogs a Top 5 finish.
Senior Michelle Palacio (Charlotte, N.C.) led Gardner-Web in the 400 I.M., picking up a 14th place finish with a time of 1:47.19. Teammate Samantha Shelley, a junior from Wilmington, Del., took 15th with a time of 4:47.89 in the event. Senior Liz Van Halsema (Charlotte, N.C.) added a 19th place showing in 4:49.33.
Graves (Riverview, Fla.) made the most of the first individual race of her collegiate career, recording the top time of the meet in the women's 100 fly at 57.46. The freshman beat out N.C. State senior Julianna Prim (2nd, 57.69) and Duke freshman Linsay Cooper (3rd, 57.76) to earn her first ever collegiate win.
Singleton, a senior from Elkin, N.C., and freshman April Niccolai (Naperville, Illinois) added 13th (59.62) and 17th (1:00.59) place finishes for the Runnin' Bulldog women in the event.
One event later, Graves turned around to finish 7th in the 200 free, leading GWU with a time of 1:55.56 in the event. Junior Faith Kempf (Sterling, Kan.) took 15th in 1:58.25, followed by freshman Taylor Schwartz's (Westerville, Ohio) 20th place finish in 2:00.16.
Byrum, a sophomore from Winston-Salem, N.C., gave Gardner-Webb a 4th place finish in the 100 breast with a time of 1:06.35. Junior Anna Springer (Snellville, Ga.) was 14th in the event at 1:09.24.
Sophomore Kaylee McCallan (Melbourne, Fla.) led the GWU women in the 100 back, picking up a 16th place finish with a time of 1:01.35. Freshmen Susan Ward (Abilene, Texas) and Sarah Singleton (Elkin, N.C.) finished 19th (1:01.97) and 20th (1:02.68) to score points for the Runnin' Bulldogs.
Freshman distance specialist Madi Dinsmore (New Ipswich, N.H.) gave Gardner-Webb a 9th place finish in the 1650 free, closing fast to record a time of 18:08.25. Senior Kristen Michal (Caty, Texas) added a 15th place finish in the event with a time of 18:46.76.
To open Saturday night's session, Niccolai paced the Runnin' Bulldog women in the 200 back, placing 13th (2:10.40). Fellow freshman Taylor Schwartz (Westerville, Ohio) came in 17th for GWU in the event at 2:12.44.
Graves added her third Top 8 individual finish of the weekend in the 100 free, finishing 4th with a time of 52.81. Freshman Alaina Mattix (Loganville, Ga.) raced to a 15th place finish (54.87) in the event, and junior Anna Springer (Snellville, Ga.) came in 17th (55.19) for GWU).
Byrum continued her stellar weekend with another Top 5 finish, coming in 5th in the women's 200 breast with a time of 2:25.39. The 2011-12 CSCAA Academic All-America Honorable Mention student-athlete was followed by junior Shelley, who finished 14th (2:29.38), and senior Michelle Palacio (Charlotte, N.C.), who finished 19th (2:32.63).
Kempf led the Runnin' Bulldogs in the women's 200 fly, timing in at 2:12.07 to finish 12th. Clayton, a freshman from Brentwood, Tenn., was 15th, closing fast to record a time of 2:15.18. Fellow freshman Sarah Singleton (Elkin, N.C.) added a 19th place finish with a time of 2:17.46.
Gardner-Webb women's swimming will look to continue its recent success at meets the weekend of October 19-20. GWU competes at the VMI/UNC Asheville Relay Meet in Lexington, Va. on October 19 (5:00 p.m.) as well as the Virginia Tech Sprint Invite in Christiansburg, Va. on October 20 (11:00 a.m.).
