Oakland Men and Women Win Eighth Straight Mid-Con Championships

INDIANAPOLIS, Indiana, February 17. OAKLAND's men's and women's swimming and diving teams won their eighth consecutive Mid-Continent Conference Championships this weekend. The women compiled 902 points, beating second-place Western Illinois' by 377 points, while the men scored 982 points, 378.5 ahead of Centenary. Senior Amanda Burwell (Akron, Ohio) and junior Zoltan Horvath (Balatonalmadi, Hungary) each garnered Swimmer of the Year honors while freshman Marcin Unold (Gliwice, Poland) was named Newcomer of the Year. Thirteen men and 11 women earned spots on the All-Conference team.

The women opened the final day of the meet by taking places 2-5 in the 1,650 freestyle. Sophomore Sophia Gustafsson (Djursholm, Sweden) led the Golden Grizzly charge, finishing second with a time of 17:22.39. Junior Carolyn Routh (Sandusky, Ohio) improved her best time to 17:29.37 to place third. Freshman Rachel Girard (Minneapolis, Minn.) logged a fourth place finish with a time of 17:39.03, while junior Katie Wilke (Sandusky, Ohio) followed in fifth with a personal best time of 17:52.96. Freshman Ashley Bronkema (Zeeland, Mich.) dropped 10 seconds from her previous best when she clocked in at 18:18.53 to place eighth, while sophomore Alex Tereszczenko (Novi, Mich.) finished 10th with an 18:46.63.

Burwell posted her third win of the Mid-Con in the 200 backstroke, swimming a season best time of 2:05.49. Freshman Sarah Ludema (Zeeland, Mich.) followed in second with a personal best 2:06.18, while sophomore Tara Baxter (Manotick, Ontario) also recorded her top time in the race, hitting the wall at 2:08.54 to place third. Freshman Mary Shereda (Livonia, Mich.) finished eighth with a 2:16.64.

Junior Riley Rigoli (Grand Haven, Mich.) won the 100 free for the second consecutive year, clocking in at 52.50. Junior Rachel Beardsley (Fenton, Mich.) posted her top time with a 52.65 to finish second, while senior Elaine Shalla (Fenton, Mich.) clocked in at 53.14, good for fifth. Junior Chrissy Hager (Haslett, Mich.) finished ninth with a personal best 53.75, while senior Tracy Caruss (Royal Oak, Mich.) placed 20th with a 55.77, her top time. Tereszczenko also posted a personal best in the event with a 55.22.

Junior Kim Bacon (Bolton, Ontario), Oakland's lone entrant in the 200 breaststroke, swam a 2:26.45 to finish fourth.

Freshman Kristen Hamilton (Columbus, Ohio) was the Golden Grizzlies top performer in the 200 butterfly, finishing fifth with a 2:10.56. Sophomore Julie Hintermesiter (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.) placed seventh with a time of 2:11.05.

The women capped the meet by posting their top time in the 400 free relay. Shalla, Beardsley, Ludema and Rigoli combined to swim a 3:31.45.

Diver Missy Butcher (Holland, Mich.) recorded personal bests on both the 1-meter and 3-meter boards with scores of 207.00 and 193.50 respectively.

Sophomore Anthony Serio (Oakland, Mich.) opened the day for the Golden Grizzly men by swimming a season best time of 16:29.75 to place fourth in the 1,650 free.

Unold's winning time of 1:45.79 in the 200 backstroke broke a meet record that had stood for 15 years. Unold bested the previous mark of 1:48.85, set by Wright State's Jim Josberger in 1992, by more than three seconds. The time was also under the NCAA ‘B' standard, the second event this weekend in which Unold achieved a qualifying time.

Sophomore Mike Templeton (Canton, Ohio) finished second in the 200 back with a 1:48.15, his top time, while freshman Patrick Downing (Kirkland, Quebec) also swam a personal best with a 1:51.17 to place third. Sophomore Nate Zonenberg (Toronto, Ontario) earned seventh place with a time of 1:58.24.

Sophomore Luke Ortego (Rockford, Mich.) was Oakland's top performer in the 100 free, finishing second with a personal best time of 45.30. Junior Nick Bonucchi (Naperville, Ill.) followed in third with a 46.03, nearly a second faster than his previous best. Junior Chris Tansel (Dundee, Mich.) finished fourth with a 46.13 after notching his top time of 46.11 in the prelims. Sophomore Andy Kellogg (Chelsea, Mich.) also swam his top time in prelims, posting a 46.26 before placing sixth in the finals with a 48.84. Freshman Beau Austin (Holland, Mich.) also recorded a personal best in the race with a time of 47.43.

Horvath shaved more than two seconds off his previous best with a 2:01.05 to win the 200 breaststroke, marking the second straight year he won the event and his third individual victory of the meet. Freshman Eddie Toro (Toronto, Ontario) improved his top time by two seconds when he finished the race at 2:07.90 to place fourth. Sophomore Steven Catala (Wylie, Texas) also swam a personal best time with a 2:11.17, good for seventh. Freshman Anthony Sall (Zeeland, Mich.) dropped two seconds off his previous top time when he recorded a 2:20.24.

Sophomore Aaron Holdsworth (Wollongong, Australia) won the 200 butterfly for the second straight year, touching the wall at 1:50.74. Sophomore Jason Manasseri (Austin, Texas) placed second with a time of 1:52.81, while sophomore Garrett Baringhaus (Livonia, Mich.) followed in third with a personal best 1:53.29. Sophomore Dawid Tatarczyk (Miedziana, Poland) finished in eighth with a time of 1:59.79.

Senior diver John Van Portfleet (Grand Rapids, Mich.) scored a personal best 289.80 on the 3-meter board to place third in the event. Freshman Tory Dantuma (East Kentwood, Mich.) also compiled a personal best score with a 270.45, good for seventh. Freshman Adam Ralph (Bloomfield Hills, Mich.) finished eighth with a score of 248.15, while freshman Mike Ledesma (Holland, Mich.) registered a personal best 242.00 to place 10th.

The Golden Grizzlies capped the meet with a win in the 400 free relay, as the combination of Unold, Ortego, Tansel and Bonucchi posted an NCAA ‘B' qualifying time of 2:59.22. Additionally, Unold's time of 44.37 on the leadoff leg was the fastest time in the conference this season in the 100 free and also made the NCAA ‘B' qualifying standard.

Mid-Continent All-Conference teams:
Men – First team: Nick Bonucchi, Oakland; Joe Ethington, Eastern Illinois; Aaron Holdsworth, Oakland; Anthony Holzhauer, Western Illinois; Zoltan Horvath, Oakland; Andy Kellogg, Oakland; Matt Latham, Eastern Illinois; Jason Meinhardt, Western Illinois; Brent Noble, Eastern Illinois; Luke Ortego, Oakland; Bill Senese, Eastern Illinois; Chris Tansel, Oakland; Dawid Tatarczyk, Oakland; Anthony Serio, Oakland; Eddie Toro, Oakland; Jaron Tuttle, IUPUI; Marcin Unold, Oakland.
Second team: Eric Campbell, Western Illinois; Matt Crittenden, Eastern Illinois; Joe Ethington, Eastern Illinois; Mark Garrigues, South Dakota State; Ross Gilbert, Centenary; Samuel Hayes, Centenary; Chris Holzwarth, South Dakota State; Matt Josephson, South Dakota State; Chase Lambert, Centenary; Jason Manasseri, Oakland; Cole McGee, Centenary; Wladimir Montoya, Centenary; Bryan Myers, Centenary; Dustin Myers, Centenary; Anthony Serio, Oakland; Jamieson Stults, Centenary; Mike Templeton, Oakland, Chad Thomsen, South Dakota State.

Women – First team: Kim Bacon, Oakland; Rachel Beardsley, Oakland; Amanda Burwell, Oakland; Marlise Davidson, Eastern Illinois; Laura Dinkelmann, Western Illinois; Madeha Farrar, Western Illinois; Sophia Gustafsson, Oakland; Kristen Hamilton, Oakland; Sarah Ludema, Oakland; Riley Rigoli, Oakland; Carolyn Routh, Oakland; Elizabeth Scott, IUPUI; Elaine Shalla, Oakland; Maggie Vaughan, Centenary; Katie Wilke, Oakland.
Second team: Tara Baxter, Oakland; Taryne Cantillo, Centenary; Amanda Gregory, Valparaiso; Erin Hall, Western Illinois; Jaclyn Krause, Valparaiso; Jennifer Madgiak, Western Illinois; Rachel Majercik, Valparaiso; Taylor Martin, Western Illinois; Rachel Musser, South Dakota State; Mallory Onisk, South Dakota State; Anna Orwick, Valparaiso; Mariah Pavlicek, South Dakota State; Katlyn Smethurst, Valparaiso; Elizabeth Thompson, Valparaiso; Emily Tschetter, South Dakota State; Leslie Wyatt, Centenary.

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