2008 UAA Swimming & Diving Championships

Championship Information

Saturday, February 23

FINAL TEAM STANDINGS

EMORY UNIVERSITY MEN, WOMEN CAPTURE TENTH STRAIGHT ASSOCIATION TEAM CHAMPIONSHIPS

MMThe Emory University men's and women's swim teams each claimed their tenth consecutive team titles at the 2008 University Athletic Association Swimming and Diving Championships hosted by the University of Rochester at the Webster Aquatic Center.

MMThe Eagle women used an all-around team effort in winning their 17th overall Association championship, compiling 1,951 points for the four-day meet. The score is the highest point total for the UAA meet since converting to the three-heat final format (bonus, consolation, and championship) last season.

MMWashington University in St. Louis edged out New York University in a battle for second place in the women’s standings, compiling 1,284 points to the Violets’ 1,260 points. Carnegie Mellon University finished fourth with 1,117 points, followed by, in order, the University of Chicago (852), Case Western Reserve University (791), host University of Rochester (740), and Brandeis University (588).

MMThe Emory men, sparked by multiple Association championships by sophomores Kevin Yamada (three) and John Petroff (two), along with an individual title from junior Keith Diggs, totaled 1,704 points in successfully defending their team championship.

MMCarnegie Mellon and New York finished in second (1,413) and third (1,315) place, respectively, while Washington totaled 1,142 points to finish fourth. Chicago (999), Case (677), host Rochester (634), and Brandeis (477) rounded out the standings.

MMThe Emory tandem of freshman Liz Horvat and sophomore Ruth Westby garnered UAA Rookie and Swimmer of the Year accolades for the women, each capturing three individual Association titles. Horvat posted NCAA Division III automatic qualifying marks in winning the 500-yard and 1,650-yard freestyles, and the 400-yard individual medley, while Westby became the first UAA female swimmer to sweep the freestyle sprint events, establishing UAA meet records in the 50-yard and 100-yard freestyles to go with her crown in the 200-yard freestyle. Her times in the two longer distances were also NCAA automatic qualifying marks. Westby also swam on two winning relays for the Eagles, anchoring the 200-yard and 400-yard freestyle relays.

MMNew York junior Andrew Lardiere was named the men’s Swimmer of the Year after sweeping all three freestyle sprint events (the first Association male swimmer to accomplish the feat) and swimming on four victorious relays. Lardiere captured the 50-yard and 100-yard freestyles, setting Association records in both events during the preliminary heats, while adding the 200-yard freestyle. He swam the anchor leg on the Violets 200-yard freestyle and 200-yard medley relays, both setting new UAA meet records, the 400-yard medley relay, and the meet-ending 400-yard freestyle relays.

MMWashington freshman David Chao was named the men’s Rookie of the Year, registering top-10 finishes in the 50-yard (ninth), 100-yard (tied for sixth), and 200-yard (fourth) freestyles and swimming the leadoff leg of the Bears’ runner-up 400-yard freestyle relay.

MMWashington senior Priya Srikanth and freshman Max Norris of New York garnered UAA men’s and women’s Diver of the Year accolades, respectively. Srikanth successfully defended her one-meter and three-meter springboard titles, while Norris, a Rochester-area native, made his Association championship debut by capturing both boards before the hometown crowd.

MEET SUPERLATIVES FROM SATURDAY'S FINALS

MM• Carnegie Mellon freshman Molly Evans established a new UAA record in winning the women's 200-yard backstroke, posting an NCAA "A" qualifying time of 2:04.67, stopping defending champion and previous record-holder Meredith Nordbrock of Washington from claiming her third title of the meet (and eighth career Association championship). The top three finishers all posted NCAA "A" cut times, Nordbrock turning in a time of 2:05.04, and junior Tess Pasternak of Emory finishing third in 2:05.07.

MM• NYU junior Paul Hogan turned in an NCAA "A" cut in capturing the men's 1,650-yard freestyle timed finals. Swimming in the final heat, Hogan posted a time of 15:51.24, .43 seconds under the qualifying standard. He was the lone Violet swimmer outside of teammate Lardiere to claim a UAA title.

MM• Carnegie Mellon's sophomore duo of John Johnson and Jeff Dahlen finished 1-2, respectively, in the men's 200-yard backstroke, with the 60-point contribution helping the Tartans in jumping over NYU into second place in the final team standings (first place was worth 32 points, and second place worth 28 points).

MM• Freshman Marie Kim accounted for the only other individualtitle for Emory outside of Horvat and Westby, capturing the women's 200-yard breaststroke in a time of 2:25.62.

MM• University of Chicago freshman Ellie Elgamal completed her sweep of the women's butterfly events with her triumph in the 200-yard event, posting a NCAA "B" qualifying time of 2:08.23. She is only the second Chicago female swimmer to come away a multi-event champion in a UAA meet (see Friday's recap).

TEAM STANDINGS (through Friday's competition)

MMEmory University’s men’s and women’s swimming squads secured their leads in the team standings during day three of the 2008 University Athletic Association Swimming and Diving Championships hosted by the University of Rochester at the Webster Aquatic Center, setting the stage for both to claim their ninth consecutive team titles.

MMFreshman Liz Horvat and sophomore Ruth Westby each produced NCAA Division III automatic qualifying efforts in capturing their second Association individual titles of the meet for the Emory women, whose depth reigned supreme for a second straight night in increasing their lead with 1,286 points. Washington University in St. Louis, which got another record-setting effort from senior Meredith Nordbrock, stands in second place with 901 points, followed closely by New York University (876) and Carnegie Mellon University (741).

MMThe Emory men, behind individual titles from junior Keith Diggs and sophomores John Petroff and Kevin Yamada, gave themselves a bit more breathing room in the standings with their 1,144 point total. New York University, which produced another record-breaking relay performance and individual championship from junior Andrew Lardiere, holds down second place with 892 points, with Carnegie Mellon University only five points behind in third place with 887 points. Washington University in St. Louis stands fourth with 794 points.

WOMEN
MMLiz Horvat turned in her second NCAA “A” qualifier and UAA title of the championships in the 400-yard individual medley, leading a 1-2-3 Emory sweep in the event. Her winning time of 4:28.59 was more than six seconds faster than teammate Natty Chalermpalanupp, who posted a “B” qualifying time of 4:35.00. Kristin Tadano completed the three-place sweep with a time of 4:37.97, also an NCAA “B” qualifier.

MMEagle teammate Ruth Westby followed four races later with her second UAA title in the 200-yard freestyle, posting an NCAA “A” mark of 1:52.14. Westby also swam the leadoff leg of Emory’s victorious 800-yard freestyle relay, which also established an NCAA “A” qualifying time of 7:36.81.

MMWashington’s Meredith Nordbrock garnered her second UAA individual title and meet record of the championships in the 100-yard backstroke, establishing an NCAA “A” qualifying time of 57.98 seconds. Entering the final day of competition, Nordbrock presently has seven career UAA titles to her resume. Earlier in the day, she swam the second leg of the Bears’ winning 200-yard medley relay, which posted an NCAA “B” qualifying time of 1:48.39.

MMFreshman Ellie Elgamal of the University of Chicago captured the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 58.04 seconds. Elgamal, who improved on her NCAA “B” qualifying mark in the preliminary heats with a time of 57.82, is the third Chicago female swimmer to capture a UAA individual championship (NOTE OF CLARIFICATION: Margaret Pizer was a three-time UAA champion for the Maroons at the 1997 meet, capturing the 200-, 500-, and 1,650-yard freestyles in earning UAA Swimmer of the Year honors. Louise Wilkerson won the 100-yard breaststroke in becoming the first individual women's champion for the Maroons in 1989. The initial update written incorrectly noted that Elgamal was only the second individual champion for Chicago, snapping a 19-year draught).

MMNew York University junior Samantha Ashby pulled the upset of the meet in capturing the 100-yard breaststroke, out-dueling defending champion Ellen Flader of Emory with an NCAA “B” qualifying time of 1:07.21. Ashby came into the final as the fastest qualifier in the prelims with a time of 1:07.39.

MEN
MMEmory, held to only one individual champion on Thursday, found its groove in the Friday evening finals with three UAA champions. After posting a second-place finish in the 200-yard medley relay, The Eagles got back-to-back titles from junior Keith Diggs and sophomore John Petroff.

MMDiggs, who currently sports the top time in NCAA Division III in the 400-yard individual medley (3:57.96), claimed the event with a time of 4:03.16, holding off the Washington University duo of junior Perry Bullock (4:04.39) and sophomore and defending champion Alex Beyer (4:05.23). Petroff narrowly missed out on a UAA record in winning the 100-yard butterfly. His time of 50.26 seconds was .85 seconds off of the nine-year-old mark set by Emory’s Chris Rendall.

MMSophomore Kevin Yamada improved on his NCAA “B” season best time in capturing his second Association title of the meet in the 100-yard breaststroke, winning a battle over NYU senior Brad Thornton (:57.55) and sophomore Jason Huber of Carnegie Mellon (:58.06). Seven of the eight finalists in the event posted NCAA “B” cut times.

MMNYU’s Andrew Lardiere continued to make his case in figuring into UAA Swimmer of the Year consideration. He opened his evening by swimming a blistering 20.10-second freestyle anchor leg in helping the Violets to their second relay meet record of the championships in the 200-yard medley relay. Teaming with seniors Matthew Ferreira, Thornton, and Shaughn Keating, NYU took down Carnegie Mellon University’s seven-year mark (1:33.27) with a time of 1:32.98, missing the NCAA automatic qualifying mark by .31 seconds. Later in the day, Lardiere captured his second Association individual crown in the 200-yard freestyle with an NCAA “B” cut time of 1:40.98.

MMCarnegie Mellon sophomore Jeff Dahlen halted the Emory/NYU domination with a UAA championship in the 100-yard backstroke, edging out Emory senior and 2006 champion Steve Inacker with an NCAA “B” qualifying time of 52.47 seconds. Inacker also produced an NCAA “B” qualifier with a time of 52.71 seconds.

MMWashington University capped off the evening with a victory in the 800-yard freestyle relay, with the team of Beyer, freshman David Chao, sophomore Brian Kushner, and junior Kevin Leckey winning easily in an NCAA “B” qualifying time of 6:50.66.

Thursday, February 21

TEAM STANDINGS (through Thursday's finals)