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Feb 20, 2008

NEWMAC Women's Swimming & Diving Championship Preview

Courtesy of Wellesley College Sports Information Department 

Babson senior and seven-time NEWMAC champion Meg Lynch (Holden, Mass.) this season recorded her 14th program record, making her the most decorated Babson swimmer.  At last year's championships she took first place in the 100-yard butterfly and 200-yard individual medley, and placed second in the 100-yard breaststroke.  Standout first-year Mia Filippini (Lake Forest, Ill.) has turned in strong performances in the 50-yard freestyle and butterfly and 100-yard backstroke.

Clark first-years Elizabeth Rosen (North Attleboro, Mass.) and Britney Wigley (Newport Beach, Calif.) both set meet records at January's Worcester City Championships, in the 1650-yard and 500-yard freestyle respectively.  Junior diver Jess Baker (Queensbury, N.Y.) will challenge in the 1- and 3-meter diving events.

Coast Guard senior captain Joan Hunter (Warren, Penn.) claimed the 2007 title in the 100-yard freestyle and turned in second-place performances in the 50- and 200-yard freestyle events.  First-year Kim Shadwick (Campbell Hall, N.Y.) will compete for freestyle titles as well, having won the 200- and 500- yard events during this season.  She has also turned in several backstroke sprint wins in 2008.

Ranked 20th in the nation, MIT returns several 2007 event champions.  Senior diver Doria Holbrook (Yakima, Wash.) will defend her titles in both the 1- and 3-meter diving events.  Sasha Brophy (Cupertino, Calif.) and Nicole O'Keeffe (Los Angeles, Calif.) return as well after 2007 wins in the 200-yard freestyle and the 400-yard individual medley, respectively.  Both were also members of last year's winning 800-yard freestyle relay team last year.  First-year Amy Jacobi (Cranbury, N.J.) will challenge in the individual freestyle events after capturing several sprint victories during the season.

Senior captains Grace Bauer (Oakdale, Conn.) and Meredith Bartelstein (Glencoe, Ill.) will lead the way for Mt. Holyoke.  Bauer, who holds nine school records, made a run at the 100-yard freestyle record in early February; she will be a top NEWMAC contender in the freestyle events, and will challege in the 200-yard medley relay with Ginny Taylor (San Luis Obispo, Calif.), Cristina Vieira (Staten Island, N.Y.) and Lisa Nash (Shorewood, Wisc.)  Bartelstein will challenge in both diving events.

Smith turned in a strong preview performance at the Seven Sisters Championships, taking seven event titles and setting three new meet records.  Shanti Freidas (Evanston, Ill.) toppled the meet records in both 1- and 3-meter diving, while distance freestyler Marly Pineda (Bosque Farms, N.M.) set a meet record in the 1650-yard event.  Pineda also claimed titles in the 400-yard individual medley, 500-yard freestyle, and 200-yard butterfly.

Springfield's Moira Price (Berkeley Heights, N.J.) will aim to cap off a strong junior season in which she set two new ECAC Winter Championship records and recorded NCAA B cuts in the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke.  She will challenge in those and the freestyle events.  Melissa Nelson (Wallingford, Conn.) and Erin White (Glastonbury, Conn.) will lead the Springfield diving squad, each having posted national qualifying scores on both boards this season.

A strong Wheaton team has surpassed their season win record for the fourth year in a row, topping last year's 14-win campaign.  Senior Abby Pratt (Melrose, Mass.) will be a contender in the freestyle and backstroke sprints; and first-year Dania Piscetta (Belmont, N.H.), who made a run at the 200-yard freestyle school record this season, will challenge in freestyle and butterfly.  Wheaton's relay teams have been strong as well, with the 200-yard medley and 400-yard freestyle squads chasing school records.

For WPI, sophomore diver Morgan Guardino (Manchester, CT) returns to the boards after tallying a NCAA consideration score of 411 points in the 1 meter event in last year's championships. Guardino, who owns WPI school records, has posted scores that rank in the top 10 in the NEWMAC in both the 1-meter and 3-meter events. In the pool, WPI will look to challenge in the 200-free relay as well as the 100-yard breaststroke where Karen O'Sullivan (Pelham, NH) has posted a top-15 time and also owns the WPI school record.

Host Wellesley College captured their 11th consecutive Seven Sisters title earlier this month.  Two-time national competitor Savanna Johnson (Bloomington, Ind.) will compete in the freestyle sprints and Jenny Wu (Livingston, N.J.) will challenge in freestyle and breaststroke events.  First-years Cathy Poon (McLean, Va.), Alex Simas (Bellevue, Wash.) and Dana Dutton (Anacortes, Wash.) have all turned in strong performances this season and will join Johnson and Wu for the freestyle and medley relays.  Diver Kate Sorenson (Bolton, Mass.) broke school records this season in both the 1- and 3-meter events, and with Stephanie White abroad will be Wellesley's sole challenger for the conference diving titles.