Notre Dame Men And Women Hold Comfortable Leads At Shamrock Invitational

NOTRE DAME, Indiana, January 31. THE University of Notre Dame swimming and diving teams hold commanding leads in the team standings after day one of the Shamrock Invitational. Notre Dame’s Emma Reaney set a new pool record of 1:58.42 in the women’s 200 IM to highlight the first night of action in South Bend.

Notre Dame Women’s Press Release

With victories in five of the six events, the University of Notre Dame women’s swimming and diving team got off to a great start on day one of the Shamrock Invitational at Rolfs Aquatic Center, as they carry a 79-31 lead over Iowa into the second and final day of the three-team meet. A loud crowd of 432 took in the first day, with many more expected back for day two.

Notre Dame bookended wins in the 200 IM, 50 free and 1-meter dive with victories in the 200 free and 400 medley relays to give the Irish a 48-point cushion. Northwestern joined the Hawkeyes at the meet, but the Irish and Wildcats dualed just a few short weeks ago so both head coaches chose not to keep score in their matchup.

The Irish opened day one in style as the foursome of Christen McDonough, Catherine Mulquin, Genevieve Heidkamp and Hannah Bowen won the 200 free relay in 1:33.27, besting second place Iowa by almost two seconds (1.88).

Emma Reaney continued to impress as she lowered her own pool record in the 200 IM by going 1:58.42. The Lawrence, Kan., native set the previous record of 1:58.95 Jan. 26, 2013. Freshman Katie Miller made the event a 1-2 finish for the Irish as she touched the pad in 2:00.99. Both times by Reaney and Miller were NCAA B cuts.

Notre Dame absolutely owned the 50 free as six of the first eight swimmers to finish were Irish blue and gold. Senior Kelly Ryan claimed first in 23.17, followed by McDonough (2nd – 23.62), Mulquin (3rd – 23.64) and Bowen (4th – 23.70). Senior Mikelle Masciantonio (T-6th – 24.30) and Heidkamp (8th – 24.32) rounded out the Irish domination.

“I was really happy with the 50 because that time rivaled my personal best,” said Ryan. “It was nice to race in a fast suit as well because it’s great practice for the upcoming ACC meet.

“The team got off to a great start tonight winning five events. It’s fun to see everyone swimming in the fast suits because it really does help.”

In diving, junior Allison Casareto claimed first on the 1-meter board by a wide margin with 324.70 points. Teammate Lindsey Streepey took second with 292.00 points.

Notre Dame rounded out the evening with a win in the 400 medley relay as Mulquin, McDonough, Bridget Casey and Bowen touched the pad in 3:46.55, 1.65 seconds ahead of second-place Northwestern.

The finale of the Shamrock Invitational gets underway at 10 a.m. Saturday with the night session set for 5 p.m. Fans that can’t make Rolfs Aquatic Center can follow day two through live results and the Meet Mobile App.

Notre Dame Men’s Press Release

A pair of event wins and solid times across the board propelled the University of Notre Dame men’s swimming and diving team during the first session of the 2014 Shamrock Invitational in front of 432 fans Friday night at the Rolfs Aquatic Center.

The Irish enter day two of the competition Saturday with a 66-44 dual lead over Iowa, and a 58-52 edge over Missouri State following the opening night of the invitational.

After placing third in the 200 freestyle relay to open the racing, Notre Dame gained its first win of the meet in the 500 freestyle. Freshman Joe Petrone shaved more than six seconds off his previous top time in a victorious run of 4:30.39. Junior co-captain Patrick Murphy was immediately behind Petrone with a runner-up effort of 4:30.81. Senior two-time All-American Frank Dyer gave the Irish a podium sweep with a time of 4:32.46 to place third.

Sophomore Shane McKenzie paced Notre Dame in the 200 IM, taking third place following a trek of 1:50.75. Freshman Reed Fujan (1:51.25) was just behind in fourth place, followed by senior co-captain Colin Babcock (1:51.50) rounding out the top five in the favor of the Irish.

Iowa swept the podium in the 50 freestyle, but Notre Dame sophomore Michael Hudspith was hot on the trail of the leaders, winning his heat and tying for fourth overall with a season-best clip of 21.00. Sophomore Nicholas Sim (21.56) and freshman Jack Cobain (21.75) finished in 15th and 16th place, respectively.

Freshman Joe Coumos provided the second Irish win of the day, cruising to victory in the 3-meter dive with a cumulative score of 353.55 points, his sixth score of 350 or more points this season. Junior Ted Wagner put together a solid series of dives to place third with 331.10 points, with classmates Nick Nemetz (328.15 points) and Michael Kreft (322.00 exhibition score) providing Notre Dame with four of the top five scores.

Strong closing legs from Dyer and junior All-American Zach Stephens helped the Irish secure second place in the 400 medley relay to cap the day’s action, as the Notre Dame ‘A’ entry that also included Bogac Ayhan and Cameron Miller completed the race in 3:19.41. The Irish ‘C’ squad consisting of senior Bertie Nel, junior Patrick Olson, junior Broderick Kelley and Fujan added a point-scoring swim of 3:22.94 for fifth place.

Day two of the Shamrock Invitational is scheduled to begin Saturday at 10 a.m. inside the Rolfs Aquatic Center with the 200 medley relay. The men’s 1-meter diving competition will begin at 1:30 p.m., and the event’s third and final session is scheduled to get under way at approximately 5 p.m. Notre Dame seniors Colin Babcock, Joshua Choi, Frank Dyer and Bertie Nel, and senior manager Madison Boyle will be recognized prior to the start of Saturday night’s third session.

Results For: Shamrock Invitational, Day One

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