Gardner-Webb Men's Swimming Scores Fifth Place Finish at the All-N.C. Invitational
October 07, 2012 | Swimming
Greensboro, N.C. - Gardner-Webb got five Top 10 individual finishes from freshman Nathan Lile and three from sophomore Jordan Denmark, and saw each of its four relays finish in the Top 8 to lead the Runnin' Bulldog men to a fifth place finish at the inaugural All-N.C. Invitational.
North Carolina State finished atop the men's standings with 1,438 points. Duke was second with 1,095.5 points, East Carolina took third with 1,095 points, and Wingate was fourth 773. Gardner-Webb (716) edged fellow CCSA member Davidson (707.5), which finished in sixth after Saturday.
Gardner-Webb put together a 5th place finish in Saturday morning's first event, the 200 medley relay. Colin James (24.65), Drew Ellwanger (26.39), DJ Hughes (23.28), and Nathan Lile (21.19) teamed up for a time of 1:35.51, a Top 5 finish, and the top CCSA time in the event.
Lile, a freshman from Waynesville, N.C., recorded his third Top 8 individual finish of the meet with a 7th place showing (4:07.67) in the 400 I.M. Junior Cody Meyers (Mobile, Ala.) added a 16th place finish for the Runnin' Bulldog men after timing in at 4:19.49.
Hughes (Snellville,Ga.) led GWU in the men's 100 fly, placing 9th overall with a time of 52.59. Freshman Tate Warden (Charleston, W.V.) was next for the Runnin' Bulldogs with a 15th place showing (53.67), and junior Will Payne (Pendleton, Ind.) added a 19th place finish in 54.46 to score points for his team.
Lile paced the Gardner-Webb men in the 200 free with the 6th fastest time at 1:44.00. Warden cracked the Top 8 for the first time in his collegiate career, placing 8th with a time of 1:44.80 in the event. A third GWU freshman, Joe MacGregor (Brooksville, Fla.), recorded a Top 20 time in the men's 200 free, as MacGregor took 16th with a time of 1:47.41.
Ellwanger (Newborn, Ga.) gave the Runnin' Bulldogs a 5th place finish in the men's 100 breast, turning in a time of 58.13.
A trio of Runnin' Bulldogs scored Top 20 finishes in the men's 100 back, led by sophomore Jordan Denmark (Raleigh, N.C.), who took 9th with a time of 52.72. Denmark's performance, his second Top 10 finish of the weekend, was followed by Brandon Searle's and James' 16th (54.76) and 17th (54.87) place finishes respectively.
Freshman Luke Denman (Greenville, S.C.) paced the Runnin' Bulldog men in the 1650 free, finishing fast for a time of 16:40.27 and a 5th place finish. Junior Sam Wilson (New Bern, N.C.) added a 12th place finish (17:18.14) for GWU.
LIle and Denmark led the Runnin' Bulldogs in the 200 back, touching in at 1:52.31 (3rd) and 1:54.08 (5th) respectively. The event marked the first time of the weekend in which multiple GWU swimmers cracked the Top 5 of an event. Junior Taft Kallam (Randleman, N.C.) added a 19th place finish (2:00.61) in the event.
Hughes' 15th best time in the 100 free (48.51) paced the Gardner-Webb men.
Ellwaner (17th) and Denman (19th) cracked the Top 20 in the men's 200 breast, timing in at 2:15.61 and 2:17.64 respectively.
Meyers, Warden, and Hughes found a spot in the Top 20 in the men's 200 fly. Meyers led with a 12th place finish (1:58.95), Warden was next in 14th (1:59.13), and Hughes followed in 16th (2:00.58) in a deep event for the Runnin' Bulldog men.
Gardner-Webb men'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.).
