Freestyle wins highlight Chapman's SCIAC debut in the pool
CLAREMONT, Calif. – The Chapman University men's and women's swimming and diving teams made their SCIAC debuts on Saturday in a dual meet against Pomona-Pitzer Colleges in Claremont. The Panther women lost 180-115 to the Sagehens, while the men also fell by a score of 182-85.
The Chapman women displayed strength in freestyle events, earning first-place finishes in the 50 free, the 1000 free and the 200 freestyle relay.
It was the Panthers' finish in the 200 free relay that may have been their most impressive. The team of seniors Amanda Morris, Sami McLaughlin and Samantha Martin, along with sophomore anchor Kirsten Spicer earned a time of 1:45.94 – less than 4 seconds off the school record set back in February. It was McLaughlin who swam the fastest leg of the event with a time of 25.93 in the second 50 yards.
Spicer also proved on Saturday that she was the fastest female in the pool – at least in the 50 yard freestyle event. The sophomore took first in the race with a time of 26.00. The Chapman record is 24.84, set in 2004 and tied in '06.
A pair of Panthers, Martin and sophomore Paige Davis, finished 1-2 in the 1000 freestyle with Martin edging out her teammate by less than a second. Martin earned a finish of 11:38.61 to nip Davis at the wall. The sophomore came in at 11:39.57 for second place.
McLaughlin's speedy time in the freestyle relay wasn't her only solid performance. The senior earned a second-place finish in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:11.17, just .18 seconds behind the winner Nola Shi from Pomona-Pitzer. McLaughlin's finish was also a mere 3 seconds off the school record set in 2010.
In women's diving, senior Kiernan Gilbert earned first place in the 3-meter springboard event with an overall score of 158.5 and right behind her was freshman Jamie Ralph with a score of 141.6. Pomona-Pitzer freshman Dawn Barlow kept the Chapman duo from the same feat in the 1-meter event, scoring 169.5 for first place. Gilbert (154.95) and Ralph (148.05) finished second and third.
On the men's side it was senior Hayden Boal with the best swim of the day as he earned a first-place finish in the 500 freestyle with a time of 4:58.53. The senior also claimed second place in the 1000-yard freestyle with a time of 10:25.02.
Sophomore Rory Stewart earned the men's only other victory with a time of 2:09.59 in the 200-yard backstroke.
The Chapman men and women are idle now until after the New Year. The Panthers will travel to Redlands on Jan. 5 to take on the Bulldogs and Cal Lutheran at 11 a.m. in more SCIAC action.
by Doug Aiken
Sports Information Director
Results: http://www.chapmanathletics.com/sports/swimdive/2012-13/files/CU-PP.htm
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