Bluegrass Mountain Conference Championships: Day Two

CHARLOTTE, North Carolina, February 16. THE Wingate University men’s swimming team is in first place after the first full day of the 2012 Bluegrass Mountain Conference (BMC) Championships at the Mecklenburg County Aquatics Center (MCAC) pool in downtown Charlotte. The Bulldog women’s swimming team is second behind 2011 title-holder Johns Hopkins (Md.) University.

The four-time defending BMC champions, the Wingate men have 312 points through 14 events. Queens University of Charlotte is second with 242 points, while Johns Hopkins is third with 174.5 points. The JHU Blue Jays top the women’s charts with 298 points. Wingate is next with 244 points. Queens is third with 166 points.

Wingate University men’s swimming
Thursday BMC recap

Wingate sophomore Iaroslav Denysenko (Poltava, Ukraine) won his second 2012 BMC race in as many tries Thursday night, touching first in his signature 500 Freestyle with a new meet and conference-record time of 4:22.68. On Wednesday night, Denysenko won the 1000 Freestyle with a meet-record time of 9:04.86.

Denysenko missed the NCAA Division II 500 Free record by one-tenth of a second. Vlasta Burda (CSU Bakersfield) set the record with a 4:22.58 clocking at the 2002 NCAA Division II championship meet. The defending NCAA Division II national champion in the 500 Free, Denysenko swam a (then) WU school-record time of 4:23.14 on March 11, 2011 in San Antonio.

Denysenko had much Bulldog company Thursday night, as classmate Marko Blazevski (Skopje, Macedonia) was third in the distance race with a time of 4:30.83. Junior Cole Dutton (Myrtle Beach, S.C.) was fourth in the 500 Freestyle (4:35.19), while freshman Max Normand (Orlando, Fla.) was sixth (4:37.28). Dutton placed second to Denysenko in Wednesday night’s 1000 Freestyle.

The Bulldogs finished 1-2-4 in the men’s 200 Individual Medley. Wingate junior Spencer Waganaar (Satellite Beach, Fla.) touched first with a time of 1:52.31. Defending champion and Bulldog sophomore Tim Kniffler (Mulheim, Germany) was second with a time of 1:52.46. Wingate freshman David Collum (DeLand, Fla.) shattered his personal-best time, placing fourth in 1:52.90.

Wingate freshman Issam Zeraidi (Brussels, Belgium) finished sixth in the 50 Freestyle with a time of 20.96. The top six finishers were within one second of each other; Queens senior John Long touched first with a time of 20.00 flat. Bulldog junior Rory Julyan (Cape Town, South Africa) won the 50 Free “B” Final with a time of 20.84.

In the night’s final event, the Bulldogs touched second in the 400 Medley Relay. Wingate posted an NCAA “B” cut time of 3:22.11. The Bulldog quartet included Julyan, Waganaar, senior Lee Sousa (Cornelius, N.C.) and sophomore Liubomyr Lemeshko (Poltava, Ukraine). Queens touched first with a meet-record time of 3:17.15.

In the 200 Freestyle Relay, Wingate finished third with an NCAA “B” cut time of 1:22.53. Team members included Zeraidi, Julyan, Lemeshko and sophomore Reed Miller (Mobile, Ala.). Queens took the checkered flag with a time of 1:21.38. Wingate was the defending BMC champion in both Thursday relays.

Wingate University women’s swimming
Thursday BMC recap

Bulldog sophomore Valerie Dembny (Bremen, Germany) swam a personal-best 2:05.06 to finish second in the 200 Individual Medley. The defending BMC champion, Dembny swam a 2:05.51 to take the 2011 crown. Queens University of Charlotte freshman Tessa Pena won the race with a time of 2:04.48.

Wingate junior distance specialist Paige Schmidt (Clearwater, Fla.) finished third in the 500 Freestyle with a personal-best time of 5:00.10. Defending BMC title-holder and Johns Hopkins sophomore Sarah Rinsma touched first with a time of 4:56.81. Schmidt won the 1000 Freestyle Wednesday night with a time of 10:16.55.

The Bulldogs piled up the points in the 500 Freestyle, as Wingate occupied the fourth, sixth and seventh positions. Junior Elly Speer (Manly, Sydney, Australia) was fourth (5:02.92), while freshman Amy Saunders (Brisbane, Australia) was sixth (5:06.78). Sophomore Alex Andrechuk (Ajax, Ontario, Canada) was seventh (5:07.43).

In the 200 Freestyle Relay, Wingate finished second with an NCAA “B” cut time of 1:35.96. Team members included sophomores Dembny, Amanda Gilbert (Metairie, La.) and Cameron Washburn (Wilmington, N.C.) and junior Eduarda Zucco (Brasque, Brazil). Johns Hopkins won the 200 Free Relay with a meet and conference record time of 1:34.97. The Bulldogs were the defending champions in the 200 Free Relay.

In the 400 Medley Relay, the Bulldogs placed a solid fourth with an NCAA “B” cut time of 3:53.92. Team members included Dembny, Washburn, senior Malin Kersmark (Malin-Bjarred, Sweden) and freshman Kellie Gervas (Imperial, Pa.).

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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