Gardner-Webb Splits Dual Meets Versus Georgia Southern, North Florida on Saturday
January 25, 2014 | Swimming
Statesboro, Ga. - Gardner-Webb's women's swim team went 1-1 on the day in a tri-meet with CCSA rivals Georgia Southern and North Florida, falling to the Eagles and defeating the Ospreys on the road Saturday.
The Runnin' Bulldogs finished the weekend 2-1 after defeating Georgia Southern in a relay meet on Friday night.
Giorgie Graves and Faith Kempf led the way Saturday morning, with each winning two individual events and adding a 1st place finish in the meet-closing 200 free relay.
Georgia Southern won the opening 200 medley relay, timing in at 1:46.14. Kaylee McCallan (28.09), Charity Byrum (30.15), Mary O'Doherty (25.21), and Caroline Andrews (24.86) combined to take 2nd in the event with a time of 1:48.31.
In the next event, the 1,650 free, the Eagles' Kylee Parsons and Amber Juncker occupied the top two spots, helping build the home team's lead. Sophomore Allie Petersen led GWU with a 5th place finish (19:24.46) in the event.
A big event for Gardner-Webb came in the 200 free, with three Runnin' Bulldogs finishing in the top 4 of the event led by senior Faith Kempf. Kempf (Sterling, Kansas) used a powerful third 50 to win with a time of 1:54.77, and Adél Kiss (1:56.55) and Jenna Ballinger (1:58.26) were 3rd and 4th in the event, respectively.
McCallan (Melbourne, Fla.) paced Gardner-Webb in the 100 back, securing 2nd place in the vent with a time of 59.73. April Niccolai (Naperville, Ill.) added a 4th place showing and valuable points thanks to a time of 1:00.65.
In the 100 breast, the Eagles went 1-2 behind fast swims from seniors Kristen Bates and Megan Ostrom. Junior Charity Byrum (Winston-Salem, N.C.) led GWU in the event, taking 3rd with a time of 1:07.32.
A gutsy swim from Graves (Riverview, Fla.) earned GWU a win in the 200 fly, as the sophomore closed fast for a 1st place time of 2:06.18. Sarah Singleton (Elkin, N.C.) continued her breakthrough sophomore season by racing to a 3rd place in a time of 2:10.62.
In the 50 free, O'Doherty (Charlotte, N.C.) raced to a 2nd place showing, leading GWU with a season best time of 24.37. The junior's performance on Saturday ranks her firmly in the Top 8 of the CCSA's fastest 50 free times of the season to date.
Graves (53.65) and Ballinger (55.11) turned in top 5 performances in the 100 free, leading GWU in the event by finishing 2nd and 5th, respectively.
In the 200 back, Niccolai (2:07.63) and Taylor Schwartz (2:10.29) took 2nd and 3rd, respectively.
Byrum followed with a 3rd place finish in the 200 breast, finishing with a time of 2:28.65 to lead the Runnin' Bulldogs in the event.
In the 500 free, Kiss (5:14.28) and Ballinger (5:18.61) finished 4th and 5th, respectively.
Graves won her second event in the next event, the 100 fly, finishing off a sweep of the butterfly events with a pool record time of 56.53. O'Doherty (59.49) and Singleton (59.74) were 3rd and 5th, respectively, for Gardner-Webb in the event.
In the 200 I.M., Kempf and Byrum raced to a 1-2 finish, finishing at 2:12.66 and 2:12.74, respectively. Niccolai (2:13.98) was 4th for GWU in the event.
Gardner-Webb closed the meet with a 1-2 finish in the 200 free relay, getting a 1st place finish and a time of 1:37.89 from the quartet of O'Doherty (24.63), Kempf (24.37), Springer (24.66), and Graves (24.23). GWU's 'B' relay, comprised of Maria Seward (25.71), Ballinger (24.89), Andrews (25.01), and Kiss (24.88) turned in a 2nd place finish in a combined 1:40.49.
The Runnin' Bulldogs return to action next weekend with a two-day dual meet against College of Charleston. The meet starts Friday, January 31 at 6:00 p.m. and continues through Saturday, February 1 with Senior Day recognition beginning at 11:00 a.m.
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