University of Richmond Athletics
Spiders Capture Lead And Another A-10 Record On Day Two At A-10 Swimming & Diving Championships
02/23/2007 | Women's Swimming & Diving
Feb. 22, 2007
BUFFALO, N.Y. - The Richmond Swimming and Diving squad captured the lead, as well as a third A-10 record on day two of the 2007 A-10 Championships held at Flickinger Athletic Center on the campus of Erie Community College in Buffalo, N.Y. Richmond ended the night with 284 points, over 80 points ahead of their competition.
During the 500-yard freestyle, the first event of the evening, junior Jessica Witt claimed gold after she touched nearly six seconds ahead of her competition with a time of 4:52.45. Witt's teammate, senior Caitlin Geary, placed second in a time of 4:58.07.
Richmond sophomore, Lauren Beaudreau smashed both an A-10 record and an ECC Pool record when she swam the 200-yard individual medley in 2:01.01.
Although Beaudreau broke the A-10 record, her time was not a personal best and she will look to improve upon that as the championship continues. "We're happy and pleased with our wins, but we can swim faster," stated Richmond head coach Matt Barany. "We're a little disappointed with some of the times, but we can learn lessons and take them into tomorrow morning."
Underclassmen ruled the 50-yard freestyle. Freshman Katie Sieben grabbed a first-place finish with 23.73 while freshman teammate Joanna Rakozcy touched in 24.21, good for third.
During the 200-free relay, Richmond proved victorious after freshmen Rakozcy, Katie Sieben and sophomore CJ Pisano touched in 1:35.24.
"Last year in the 200 free relay, we got fourth," stated Barany. "We won it this year so that is important. That (1:35.24) is a big drop for us and we did it with three freshmen and a sophomore."
"I think one of our most exciting contributions of the night was Katie Sieben," said Barany. "She anchored the relay and swam a phenomenal race, and then won the 50 free."
The Spiders finished with a score of 284, with over 80 points more than the next contender. Massachusetts dropped to second with a score of 201, while Duquesne moved up to third place (168.5). La Salle remains at fourth (145), followed by Fordham in fifth (138), St. Bonaventure in sixth (134.5), Xavier in seventh (117), St. Louis in eighth (113), Rhode Island in ninth (65) and George Washington in tenth (58).
The Championship resumes Thursday morning with preliminary events starting at 10:30 a.m. Finals begin tomorrow night at 6:30 p.m. Follow the Spiders through the Championships, concluding Saturday evening, at RichmondSpiders.com.
