Nov. 29, 2007
FEDERAL WAY, Wash. – After the first session of competition, the Notre Dame women’s swimming team sits in third-place out of 12 teams with 288 points at the Husky Invitational in Federal Way, Wash., with top-times of the season being swam by many on the Irish squad. The host school, Washington, is currently in the lead with 412 points with USC in second with 390 points.
With a successful morning session of prelims, the Irish had 17 individuals qualify for the finals in the evening. In the first event of night, the Notre Dame 200 free relay finished fourth with a time of 1:34.35, knocking off the team’s season best of 1:35.86. The squad consisting of Christa Riggins (Phoenix, AZ/Sunnyslope H.S.), Caroline Johnson (Springfield MO/Glendale H.S.), Sam Maxwell (Chanadler, AZ/Corona dl Sol) and Amywren Miller (Grosse Pointe Woods, MI/The Peddie School) just edged out the fifth-place team from Oregon State that finished with a time of 1:34.68.
The individual races started out well for the Irish with Lauren Sylvester (Philadelphia, PA/Germantown Academy) marking a new season best in the 500 free with a time of 4:54.22. Her swim was good enough for fifth place, with teammates Megan Farrell (Hopkinton, MA/Hopkinton H.S.), Casey Wagner (Glenshaw, PA/Shady Side Academy) and Claire Hutchinson (Baltimore, MD/McDonogh H.S.) coming in behind in the respective 11th, 12th and 14th spot. Hutchinson’s time of 4:59.64 was also a season best for her.
Ashlee Edgell (Cincinnati, OH/Madeira H.S.) and Farrell each swam great times in the 200 IM, both swimming their fastest time of the season. Edgell finished 7th with a time of 2:04.52 while Farrell finished one spot back in 8th with a time of 2:04.67.
In the 50 free, Miller just missed the individual crown when she finished in the second spot. Her time of 23.03 was a season best, beating out her old time of 23:37.
The final event of the evening was the 400 medley relay. The Notre Dame squad of Johnson, Maxwell, Farrell and Miller finished fourth with a time of 3:47.84, also a season best for the Irish. Coming into the Husky Invite they held a best of 3:48.57.
The three-day competition continues tomorrow morning (Nov. 30) with prelims at 9:30 a.m. (PT) and the finals at 6 p.m. at the Weyerhaeser King County Aquatic Center in Federal Way Washington. The final day will be on Saturday with competition beginning at the same times as on Friday.
–ND–