Husky Invite

SEATTLE, Washington, November 29. THE University of Washington women's team got off to a hot start on the first day on the Husky Invitational and finished in first place with 412 points, 22 points ahead of No. 21 USC. On the men's side, the Huskies are in fourth place, with No. 4 Michigan sitting in first place after day one.

Washington freshman Ariana Kukors, who also swims locally for the King Aquatic Club, swam a 1:58.30 in the 200 IM, which is her second-fastest time of the year in the event and less than one-half second off her own school record. She has already qualified for the NCAA Championships.

The Huskies had three girls finish among the top eight of the 200 IM A Final. In addition to Kukors, Maggie Bever came in fifth (2:03.92) and Jen Gong finished sixth (2:03.99). Bever's time is the sixth-fastest in UW history while Gong's is the eighth-fastest. Erin Campbell swam a 2:03.84 while placing second in the B Final of the 200 IM. That time is good for No. 5 all-time.

The 400 medley relay team of Kukors, Jessica Buchanan, Campbell and Kim Jasmer placed third and set a school-record with a time of 3:42.65, which is an NCAA "B" cut time.

Washington also had three top eight placers in the A Final of the 50 free with Emilee Jennings leading the way in fifth place in a time of 23.55, which is good for seventh-best all-time at the UW. Joining Jennings was Lindsey Sharp in seventh (23.78) and Bever in eighth (23.86).

Jasmer placed third in the 500 free A Final in a time of 4:52.48, which is an NCAA "B" cut time. Jasmer also was a member of the 200 freestyle relay team that took second in a time of 1:32.61, which in an NCAA "B" cut time. Joining Jasmer on the 200 free relay was Jennings, Sharp and Bever.

Washington head coach Whitney Hite praised the efforts of his girls, and especially noted the times of Petra Radovic, Liz Johnson and Ally Rich in the 500 free.

Radovic surpassed her own personal-best by more than six seconds when she swam a 4:53.92 to win the C Final. Her time is an NCAA "B" cut and sixth-best all-time at the UW. Johnson swam a 4:56.27, good for 10th-best on the UW career list, to finish second in the B Final, while Daly was third in the C Final in a time of 4:57.42.

"We were outstanding on the girls side," said Hite. "We had people breaking into our all-time top ten performances, we had people getting NCAA B cuts, we set a school record in the four hundred medley relay and we're winning the meet. You can't ask for much more than that."

Washington, with 412 points, currently is in first, followed by USC (390), Notre Dame (288), UC Santa Barbara (217), Wyoming (168), Oregon State (137), Hawaii (118), Whitworth (92), Boise State (80), Seattle (76), UC Davis (58) and Puget Sound (30).

The Michigan men hold a commanding lead with 461.5 points, followed by No. 11 California with 325 points, No. 16 USC with 224 points and Washington with 217.5 points. UC Santa Barbara is in fifth place with 177 points and they are trailed by No. 24 Hawaii (145), Seattle (108), Wyoming (82), Whitworth (82) and Puget Sound (40).

Ivan Perhat swam the second-fastest time in school history in the 50 free with a time of 20.07 to finish in fifth place in the A Final and make the NCAA "B" cut. In the 50 free B Final, Evan Bernier took sixth in a time of 20.74, and in the C Final, Brenton Dowdy placed fourth in a time of 20.96.

Scott Spansail was the only other Husky to finish amongst the top eight of the A Finals, placing eighth in the 500 free with a time of 4:28.92.

The 400 medley relay team of Evan Bernier, Yonatan Cohen, Bret Lundgaard and Perhat finished in third place in a time of 3:18.19.

The 200 free relay team of Perhat, Bernier, Brenton Dowdy and Cohen took fifth place in a time of 1:21.87. That mark was just 57 one-hundredths of a second off of the school record set in 2006.

Henry Hudson finished second in the C Final of the 200 IM in a time of 1:51.12, while Jon Banker took third in the B Final of the 200 IM in a time of 1:51.30.

"I thought our men had some particularly good races," said Hite. "Henry Hudson in the 200 IM, Jon Banker in the 200 IM, both had lifetime bests. Our IM's tonight were really good for us.

"Certainly, Ivan was a star tonight, swimming the second-fastest time in school history in the 50 free. Brenton Dowdy and Evan Bernier were also great for us in that event. Overall, it was a great night for our guys."

Special thanks to Washington for contributing this report.

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