Miami vs. Maryland, Richmond

COLLEGE PARK, Maryland, January 24. THE University of Miami swimming team had a strong performance on Saturday, though falling in a tri-meet race against host Maryland (L, 104-183) and Richmond (L, 90-188) at the Eppley Recreation Natatorium in College Park, Md.

Miami (9-7) got a strong effort from several swimmers today, as there were no diving events taking place for the Orange and Green. That would have accounted for a possible 26 points for the ‘Canes, who have had their divers finish among the top three finalists in every event this year on the 1- and 3-meter springboard.

"I was just so proud of the girls today," expressed head coach Christie Shefchunas shortly afterwards. "They're really starting to turn the corner mentally, and with there being no diving, we just had to swim all-out. I am thrilled at how they stepped up and raced."

Tiffany Petzold established a personal-best mark in the 1000-yard freestyle, placing third overall with a UM Top 10 season time of 10:27.24. Ryann Labreche was just behind Petzold in fourth place with a time of 10:36.23.

Sophomore Annika Saarnak picked up the second-best time on the year for the Orange and Green in the 200-yard freestyle coming in second for the event with a time of 1:51.09. Hagar Elgendy (1:57.00) and Lauren Jacoby (1:58.19) rounded out the Top 10 participants in the event.

Freshman Dana Hatic finished in second place in the 100-yard backstroke, touching the wall in 1:04.62, while teammates Katie Eason (1:06.56) and Britta Boesing (1:06.59) went fifth and sixth, respectively.

"This was huge to step-up mentally to the challenge laid down before them today," admits Shefchunas.

Miami junior Cori Lallier finished fourth in the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 2:05.66, with freshman Erin Simpson posting a time of 2:09.03. Kirsten Pomerleau took another Top 5 finish for the Hurricanes in the 50-yard freestyle, coming in at 24.28.

Saarnak continued her dominance of the short races with a second-place time of 51.44 in the 100-yard freestyle. Meanwhile, Novotny finished fifth in the 200-yard backstroke touching the wall in 2:06.38.

In the 200-yard breaststroke, Britta Boesing took second place at 2:22.13, with teammate Dana Hatic placing third in 2:22.33. Labreche had a season-best mark of 5:03.79 en route to a fourth place finish in the 500-yard freestyle. Petzold followed in sixth place (5:04.19) registering a personal-best mark in the event.

Novotny and Lallier had impressive runs in the 100-yard butterfly as Novotny posted a time of 56.78 to place third, and Lallier placed fifth with a time of 58.06. It was Boesing taking third place in the 200-yard IM with a time of 2:06.39, while Novotny placed fifth with a mark of 2:07.04.

The day finished up with the ‘Canes 200-yard freestyle relay team finishing third with a mark of 1:37.19. Hagar Elgendy led-off with a time of 23.95, while teammates Sarah Lozier, Ryann Labreche and Tiffany Petzold backed her up on the relay.

"I told the girls they did it here, and in three weeks we'll have a chance to do it a bit differently," expressed Shefchunas. "I told them it'll be a three-day event next time, and we'll have some time to rest in-between races and get some time to relax. But overall, I'm just very proud of the group."

Miami wraps up their dual race season for the 2008-09 campaign next Saturday, January 31 as they travel across town to face local foe FIU. UM defeated the Golden Panthers, 150-68, in Coral Gables back on October 18. The time for the meet is set for 11 a.m.

Special thanks to Miami for contributing this report.

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