Jan. 11, 2014
EVANSTON, Ill. – In its first meet of 2014, the University of Notre Dame women’s swimming and diving team won six individual events and a relay to power the Irish to victories over former BIG EAST foe Rutgers (206-94) and Big Ten member Northwestern (160-140) in a four team dual meet Saturday at Northwestern Aquatic Center. Notre Dame’s lone loss on the day came to Big Ten member Michigan (168-132).
Notre Dame’s veterans carried the Irish on the day as junior Emma Reaney won three individual events, while fellow juniors Bridget Casey and Allison Casareto and senior Kelly Ryan also earned individual victories. The Irish closed out the day with a win by Ryan, Reaney, freshman Catherine Mulquin and sophomore Catherine Galletti in the 400 free relay (3:25.15).
“With the amount of training we put in this past week, we looked fairly stressed today,” said head coach Brian Barnes. “But I asked for a tough team and they raced tough. There is no doubt that we did what we needed to do in the Bahamas. I wish we had been more competitive with Michigan today, but they were more prepared than us. I’m definitely not disappointed though, I’m actually quite happy with where we are as a team.”
Reaney started off her day with an easy win in the 100 breast as she won by over three seconds (1:00.77 to 1:04.06) and picked up an NCAA B cut to boot. She next claimed victory in the 200 breast in another NCAA B cut time (2:14.09). In this race, she won by just under four seconds (3.99). She closed out her individual slate with a victory in the 100 fly (54.92) by 1.22 seconds over Galletti. Notre Dame dominated the event as the Irish claimed four of the top five spots with junior Courtney Whyte (57.30) and senior Sarah Dotzel (57.36) taking fourth and fifth to help Notre Dame pull away from the Wildcats.
“I think we were a little tired from our long training trip and it showed at the beginning,” said Reaney. “We picked it up nicely after the first couple of events and I’m really proud of how tough we were as a team. I’m just glad I could contribute to a win in a close meet against Northwestern.”
As soon as Reaney won her first event, Casey followed it up with a victory in the 200 fly as she touched the pad in 2:01.85, .86 better than the runner-up.
Ryan was next to put her name in the victory column as bested the field in the 50 free by an impressive .29 seconds (23.69).
In the diving well, Casareto blew past the field to win the 1-meter discipline by 16.15 points (271.15) to give the Irish four straight individual wins.
The Irish (6-4), who have won six of their last seven duals, continue their season next Saturday when they head to former BIG EAST archrival and future ACC foe Louisville for an 11 a.m. dual next Saturday.
Scores
Michigan: 172, Northwestern: 128
Michigan: 168, Notre Dame: 132
Notre Dame: 160, Northwestern 140
Northwestern: 198.50, Rutgers: 101.50
Notre Dame: 206, Rutgers: 94
Event Victories
100 Breast: Emma Reaney (1:00.77 – NCAA B Cut)
200 Fly: Bridget Casey (2:01.85)
50 Free: Kelly Ryan (23.69)
1-Meter Dive: Allison Casareto (271.15)
200 Breast: Emma Reaney (2:14.09 – NCAA B Cut)
100 Fly: Emma Reaney (54.92)
400 Free Relay: Kelly Ryan, Emma Reaney, Catherine Mulquin, Catherine Galletti (3:25.15)
Event Runner-Up Finishes
200 Medley Relay: Courtney Whyte, Christen McDonough, Catherine Galletti, Hannah Bowen (1:44.33)
3-Meter Dive: Lindsey Streepey (287.50)
100 Free: Kelly Ryan (51.32)
100 Fly: Catherine Galletti (56.14)
400 IM: Katie Miller (4:23.53)
— Russell Dorn, Assistant Media Relations Director
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