Auburn vs. Arkansas Women

AUBURN, Alabama, October 5. AUBURN swimmers posted six NCAA provisional qualifying times and two divers earned NCAA Zone qualifying scores as the Tigers opened the 2011-12 season with a 142.5-100.5 victory over Arkansas on Wednesday at the James E. Martin Aquatics Center.

The Tigers won nine of the 13 events and posted strong times for an early-season meet. It was Auburn's fourth victory in four tries over Arkansas in dual-meet competition.

Hannah Riordan took two individual victories on the day to lead the Tigers. She earned an NCAA `B' cut in the 50 free with a 22.77 to win the event; teammate Haley Krakoski took second place with a 23.53. Later, in the 100 free, Riordan again was triumphant with a 50.24, leading an Auburn sweep with Krakoski (51.14) and Lindsey Norberg (52.33).

Sophomore Emily Bos earned a provisional cut in her first individual swim of the season, posting a 1:58.49 in the 200 back to win by more than two-and-a-half seconds. She also helped the top 200 medley relay team open the meet with a provisional cut of their own, swimming a 25.09 leadoff leg to help Abby Duncan, Megan Fonteno and Kelsey Winters to a winning time of 1:41.24.

The Tigers actually took the top three spots in the meet-opening event, with the second-place team of Erin Reisinger, Lauren Norberg, Olivia Scott and Haley Krakoski also posting an NCAA `B' cut time of 1:41.43. In third place with another provisional qualifier was Hannah Riordan, Laura Johnson, Arianna Vanderpool-Wallace and Lindsey Norberg, who posted a 1:41.96.

Junior Katie Gardocki was already in midseason form in the 1000 freestyle, posting a time of 9:46.68, falling just .02 seconds shy of a personal best and bettering what already ranks as the fifth-best time in Auburn history. She finished a full 17 seconds ahead of Arkansas All-American Chelsea Franklin to claim the victory for Auburn. She was also Auburn's top finisher in the 200 fly, taking third place in 2:06.81.

Junior Lauren Norberg picked up another individual win for the Tigers, taking top honors in the 200 breaststroke with an NCAA `B' cut time of 2:14.99. Laura Johnson was third (2:18.12) and Duncan was fifth (2:19.16).

Vanderpool-Wallace earned a victory in the 200 freestyle with a 1:48.85, and junior Becca Jones took second place with a 1:50.27.

Freshman Abby Duncan was the Tigers' top finisher in the 200 IM, posting a 2:04.53 in her first collegiate individual event, and senior Kelsey Winters was third with a 2:05.17.

In the diving well, senior Vennie Dantin got her 2011-12 season off to a great start by sweeping the top spots on both boards. She posted a 338.55 in the 3-meter event and a 301.20 on the 1-meter board – both NCAA Zone qualifying scores – to earn a pair of wins for the Tigers. Fellow senior Anna Aguero was the runner-up on 1-meter with a 270.45, also an NCAA Zone qualifier, and she took third in the 3-meter event with a 298.88. Freshman Cinzia Calabretta finished fourth in the 3-meter event, falling just short of a zone score with a 274.95, and fellow freshman Shanna Schuelein took third place on the 1-meter board with a 257.40, giving the Tigers a sweep of the top three spots.

Auburn took third place in the day's final event with the team of Siena DeVenuto, Jones, Aimee Middleton and Lindsey Norberg posting a 7:43.40 in the 800 freestyle relay.

The Auburn women will return to competition on Friday, Oct. 21, as they travel to Notre Dame for a non-conference dual meet. Auburn's men will also compete that day as they open their conference season with a dual meet at LSU.

The above article is a press release submitted to Swimming World Magazine. It has been posted in its entirety without editing. Swimming World offers all outlets the chance to reach our audience by contacting us at Newsmaster@swimmingworldmagazine.com. However, Swimming World reserves the right to choose what material is posted.

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