Case closed: Rookie leads Panthers at PCSC Championships

LONG BEACH, Calif. – The Chapman University women's swimming team broke four school records at the Pacific Coast Swimming Conference championships at Belmont last week, led by freshman Julie Case who anchored three relay records and placed fifth overall in the 500-yard freestyle with a record-breaking time of 5:07.91.

Case began the championships on Wednesday swimming the final leg on Chapman's 800-yard freestyle relay in 1:57.41 to give the Panthers an overall time of 8:05.98 and a ninth place finish in the event. Senior Julia Fish, sophomore Amanda Morris and sophomore Sam Martin teamed up with Case to shave over 3 seconds off the old school record set at the PCSC championships last year.

On Thursday, Case first shattered the previous Chapman record in the 500 free by nearly 13 seconds with a time of 5:09.66 in the prelims and entered the finals seeded fourth overall. The rookie then took another 2 seconds off her performance with a fifth-place finish in the finals and recording a time of 5:07.91 in the event. The previous record – an 11-year old mark – was 5:22.36 by Kati Wise.

Two more relay records came crashing down before the championships were over. Fish, sophomore Sami McLaughlin, junior Amanda Thompson and Case teamed to set a new school mark in the 400-yard medley relay with a time of 4:09.55 and a 10th-place finish on Friday. On Saturday it was Morris, Fish, McLaughlin and Case breaking a six-year old Chapman record in the 400-yard freestyle with a time of 3:40.87.

Case didn't set a school record, but she did place sixth overall in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:56.92 in the finals. Her time of 1:56.73 in the prelims was just .38 seconds off the Chapman mark.

McLaughlin also placed 11th in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:08.34 on Friday, just three tenths of a second off the school record.

by Doug Aiken
Sports Information Director