2019 Big East Championships Night 3 Recap: Villanova Women, Georgetown Men Hold Lead

Photo Courtesy: Big East Conference

By Ryan Gibbons, Swimming World College Intern.

The 2019 Big East Championships closed out night 3 in East Meadow, N.Y., featuring the 400 IM, 100 Fly, 200 Free, 100 Breast, 100 Back, 3M Diving, and 400 Medley Relay — a wide-ranging yet exciting event schedule.

Villanova’s women built on their night 2 lead, extending to 671.5 points over Xavier’s 449. Impressive finishes in the 400 IM and 200 Free, combined with a series of individual event wins and a relay victory, threw the Wildcat women ahead, giving them a strong lead going into the final day. Following the two are Georgetown (390.5), Seton Hall (293), Butler (159), and Providence (156).

While Georgetown’s men kept their lead, the Xavier team pulled close, with 500.5 points to Georgetown’s 522. The close fight is sure to make an exciting final day, with either team having a strong shot at the Big East title. Seton Hall’s 451 points fall a bit behind the two leaders, but with a large event schedule planned for Saturday, a series of strong showings could make them a contender to watch. Villanova (434.5) and Providence (179) currently sit in fourth and fifth, respectively.

Women’s 400 IM

Villanova kicked off the night with a 1-2-4 finish in the 400 IM, with Kelly Montesi taking the win in a 4:10.25. Following her was teammate Elise Pidutti (4:15.99), with Seton Hall’s Elizabeth Sargent taking third (4:24.54).

Villanova’s Emily Provenzo (4:25.35) finished out the Wildcat’s 1-2-4, followed by Xavier teammates Taylor Hogan (4:25.75) and Alison Herman (4:27.57). Georgetown’s Lauren Henasey (4:28.57) and Xavier’s Emma Kauffeld (4:30.47) closed out the event’s top eight.

Event 15  Women 400 Yard IM
==================================================================
    Name                  Age School            Prelims     Finals        
==================================================================
                    === Championship Final ===                    
 
  1 Montesi, Kelly M       18 Villanova         4:14.36    4:10.25  
  2 Pidutti, Elise D       22 Villanova         4:22.37    4:15.99  
  3 Sargent, Elizabeth H   20 Seton Hall        4:27.55    4:24.54  
  4 Provenzo, Emily S      19 Villanova         4:26.08    4:25.35  
  5 Hogan, Taylor E        19 Xavier            4:25.86    4:25.75  
  6 Herman, Alison R       19 Xavier            4:29.27    4:27.57  
  7 Henasey, Lauren C      20 Georgetown        4:29.55    4:28.57  
  8 Kauffeld, Emma C       19 Xavier            4:30.31    4:30.47

Men’s 400 IM

The ‘Nova Wildcats took another IM win, this time in the men’s pool, with Justin Cucchi winning in a 3:52.98. The podium spots were rounded out by Brett Sherman of Georgetown (3:54.06) and Lior Grubert of Seton Hall (3:57.64).

Justin Viotto of Providence (3:58.09), Carlson Temple of Georgetown (3:58.61), Cameron Weese of Xavier (3:59.61), and Seton Hall teammates Caleb Smith (4:01.44) and Ivan Michalovic (4:02.03) made up the remainder of the event in a final featuring all five competing teams in the men’s meet.

Event 16  Men 400 Yard IM
==================================================================
    Name                  Age School            Prelims     Finals        
==================================================================
                    === Championship Final ===                    
 
  1 Cucchi, Justin M       20 Villanova         3:54.54    3:52.98  
  2 Sherman, Brett M       19 Georgetown        3:56.51    3:54.06  
  3 Grubert, Lior          25 Seton Hall        3:58.29    3:57.64  
  4 Viotto, Justin A       19 Providence        4:01.19    3:58.09  
  5 Temple, Carlson D      19 Georgetown        3:57.90    3:58.61  
  6 Weese, Cameron N       20 Xavier            3:59.19    3:59.61  
  7 Smith, Caleb B         18 Seton Hall        4:01.47    4:01.44  
  8 Michalovic, Ivan A     21 Seton Hall        4:00.07    4:02.03

Women’s 100 Fly

The first butterfly event of the meet, the women’s 100 fly featured another Wildcat win with Micaela Grassi of Villanova taking the race in a 54.49, just touching out Xavier’s Caroline Gaertner (54.51) in the closest finish yet this meet. Xavier’s Taylor Hogan took bronze with a 55.31.

Close behind were Georgetown’s Dorothy Morgan and Villanova’s Tarryn Els, tying for fourth at a 55.50. The remainder of the event was finished out by Georgetown’s Lauren Henasey (55.66), Xavier’s Anne Cummins (55.79), and Georgetown’s Gabriella Meringolo (56.31).

Event 17  Women 100 Yard Butterfly
==================================================================
    Name                  Age School            Prelims     Finals        
==================================================================
                    === Championship Final ===                    
 
  1 Grassi, Micaela S      20 Villanova           55.54      54.49  
  2 Gaertner, Caroline F   22 Xavier              55.07      54.51  
  3 Hogan, Taylor E        19 Xavier              55.87      55.31  
  4 Morgan, Dorothy L      22 Georgetown          55.97      55.50  
  4 Els, Tarryn C          21 Villanova           55.53      55.50  
  6 Henasey, Lauren C      20 Georgetown          56.45      55.66  
  7 Cummins, Anne M        21 Xavier              56.64      55.79  
  8 Meringolo, Gabriella   19 Georgetown          56.54      56.31

Men’s 100 Fly

Seton Hall posted their first win of the evening with Liam Cosgrove‘s 48.41 taking first. Close behind was Villanova’s Stephen Krecsmar (48.79). Xavier followed with an incredibly close 3-4-5 finish, with David Bunnell (49.02), Brandon Abboud (49.06), and Charles Clark (49.07) all finishing within five one-hundredths of a second.

Villanova also took sixth and eigth, with Luke Sabal (49.58) and Jesse Marsh (50.16), respectively. Kyle Nash of Seton Hall finished seventh with a 49.76.

Event 18  Men 100 Yard Butterfly
==================================================================
    Name                  Age School            Prelims     Finals        
==================================================================
                    === Championship Final ===                    
 
  1 Cosgrove, Liam R       20 Seton Hall          49.01      48.41  
  2 Krecsmar, Stephen A    21 Villanova           48.63      48.79  
  3 Bunnell, David T       22 Xavier              49.46      49.02  
  4 Abboud, Brandon A      21 Xavier              48.86      49.06  
  5 Clark, Charles L       21 Xavier              48.93      49.07  
  6 Sabal, Luke T          22 Villanova           49.49      49.58  
  7 Nash, Kyle C           21 Seton Hall          49.75      49.76  
  8 Marsh, Jesse A         18 Villanova           49.88      50.16

Women’s 200 Free

Villanova took a commanding 1-2-3-4-8 finish in the 200 Free, a major win for the Wildcats and a pillar of their growing lead. Alexandra Fabbri won in a 1:47.92, followed closely by teammate Millicent Routledge (1:47.97). Fellow Wildcats Taylor Wilson (1:48.28) and Nicole Welch (1:50.54) took third and fourth, respectively.

Close behind were Xavier teammates Emily Conners (1:50.68) and Emily Saugstad (1:50.69), with Seton Hall’s Courtney McCardle (1:51.35) taking seventh and Wildcat Andrea Fong (1:51.46) finishing as the fifth Villanova woman in the final.

Event 19  Women 200 Yard Freestyle
==================================================================
    Name                  Age School            Prelims     Finals        
==================================================================
                    === Championship Final ===                    
 
  1 Fabbri, Alexandra M    22 Villanova         1:50.07    1:47.92  
  2 Routledge, Millicent   19 Villanova         1:49.18    1:47.97  
  3 Wilson, Taylor N       22 Villanova         1:49.22    1:48.28  
  4 Welch, Nicole E        18 Villanova         1:50.35    1:50.54  
  5 Conners, Emily A       21 Xavier            1:50.82    1:50.68  
  6 Saugstad, Emily M      21 Xavier            1:50.60    1:50.69  
  7 McCardle, Courtney N   21 Seton Hall        1:50.14    1:51.35  
  8 Fong, Andrea L         19 Villanova         1:51.47    1:51.46

Men’s 200 Free

Georgetown’s Jacob Kohlhoff took home the win with a 1:38.45, the first night 3 win for the Bulldogs. Following him were Seton Hall’s Benjamin Laclair (1:38.88) in second, and Georgetown’s Michael Wheeler (1:39.09) in third.

Also in the championship final were Xavier’s Benjamin Quon (1:39.55) and Jared Ritz (1:39.83), as well as Joseph Gibson of Seton Hall (1:40.53), Enrique Hernandez of Xavier (1:40.76), and Noah Chernik of Villanova (1:41.31).

Event 20  Men 200 Yard Freestyle
==================================================================
    Name                  Age School            Prelims     Finals        
==================================================================
                    === Championship Final ===                    
 
  1 Kohlhoff, Jacob D      22 Georgetown        1:39.44    1:38.45  
  2 Laclair, Benjamin P    18 Seton Hall        1:39.35    1:38.88  
  3 Wheeler, Michael A     19 Georgetown        1:39.22    1:39.09  
  4 Quon, Benjamin B       18 Xavier            1:39.96    1:39.55  
  5 Ritz, Jared P          19 Xavier            1:39.49    1:39.83  
  6 Gibson, Joseph R       21 Seton Hall        1:40.12    1:40.53  
  7 Hernandez, Enrique     22 Xavier            1:41.05    1:40.76  
  8 Chernik, Noah          20 Villanova         1:41.38    1:41.31

Women’s 100 Breast

The first breaststroke event of the meet featured Villanova’s Rayann Jaryszak taking a significant win in a 1:02.75. Following her were Butler’s Emma Spotts (1:03.99) and Seton Hall’s Jordan Decker (1:04.42).

The remainder of the final featured Xavier’s Lydia Schaeffer (1:04.46), Villanova’s Samantha Cheruk (1:04.88), Georgetown’s Megan Smith (1:04.89), Xavier’s Rebecca Titterton (1:05.30), and Providence’s Abigail Czerniecki (1:05.90) – the first women’s heat featuring all six teams, a testament to the meet’s incredible breadth of performers.

Event 21  Women 100 Yard Breaststroke
==================================================================
    Name                  Age School            Prelims     Finals        
==================================================================
                    === Championship Final ===                    
 
  1 Jaryszak, Rayann M     19 Villanova         1:03.79    1:02.75  
  2 Spotts, Emma L         19 Butler            1:04.38    1:03.99  
  3 Decker, Jordan E       21 Seton Hall        1:04.87    1:04.42  
  4 Schaeffer, Lydia D     18 Xavier            1:04.85    1:04.46  
  5 Cheruk, Samantha M     21 Villanova         1:05.61    1:04.88  
  6 Smith, Megan E         19 Georgetown        1:04.67    1:04.89  
  7 Titterton, Rebecca M   22 Xavier            1:05.54    1:05.30  
  8 Czerniecki, Abigail E  22 Providence        1:05.53    1:05.90

Men’s 100 Breast

Xavier’s Matthew Dyer took the men’s breaststroke opener in a 54.29, crushing his prelims time of 55.65. Following him were Josh Tosoni of Seton Hall (54.95) and Nathaniel Goldfarb of Georgetown (55.06).

Behind Providence’s Ryan Trammell (55.84) were Georgetown teammates Matthew Szilagyi (56.57), Arthur Want (56.58), and Carlson Temple (56.90). Xavier’s Cameron Weese closed out the heat in a 56.94.

Event 22  Men 100 Yard Breaststroke
==================================================================
    Name                  Age School            Prelims     Finals        
==================================================================
                    === Championship Final ===                    
 
  1 Dyer, Matthew S        22 Xavier              55.65      54.29  
  2 Tosoni, Josh R         20 Seton Hall          54.81      54.95  
  3 Goldfarb, Nathaniel D  20 Georgetown          55.21      55.06  
  4 Trammell, Ryan E       21 Providence          55.91      55.84  
  5 Szilagyi, Matthew S    20 Georgetown          56.39      56.57  
  6 Wang, Arthur Z         22 Georgetown          56.54      56.58  
  7 Temple, Carlson D      19 Georgetown          56.08      56.90  
  8 Weese, Cameron N       20 Xavier              56.51      56.94

Women’s 100 Back

The third stroke sprint of the night, the women’s 100 back belonged to Darby Goodwin of Villanova, touching in a 54.61. Close behind were Enlin Chen of Georgetown (55.05) and Xavier’s Caroline Gaertner (55.30), all three faster than their prelims times.

The backstroke was finished out by Ali Fort of Xavier (55.64), Julie Stankiewicz of Seton Hall (56.14), Eve Mauze of Georgetown (56.45), Laura Dicus of Xavier (56.64), and Gracie Wielar of Villanova (56.79).

Event 23  Women 100 Yard Backstroke
==================================================================
    Name                  Age School            Prelims     Finals        
==================================================================
                    === Championship Final ===                    
 
  1 Goodwin, Darby E       22 Villanova           54.98      54.61  
  2 Chen, Enlin            18 Georgetown          56.02      55.05  
  3 Gaertner, Caroline F   22 Xavier              55.66      55.30  
  4 Fort, Ali M            21 Xavier              55.37      55.64  
  5 Stankiewicz, Julie A   19 Seton Hall          55.99      56.14  
  6 Mauze, Eve E           19 Georgetown          56.67      56.45  
  7 Dicus, Laura A         21 Xavier              56.60      56.64  
  8 Wielar, Gracie E       18 Villanova           56.61      56.79

Men’s 100 Back

While Xavier’s impressive 2-3-5-6-7 placing in the men’s backstroke sprint caught eyes, Georgetown’s Andrew Carbone ultimately hit the wall first, touching in at a 48.27, just ahead of Xavier teammates Samuel Johanns (48.34) and Nathan Runyon (48.46).

Finishing fourth was Villanova’s Andrew Kelley (48.66), followed by Xavier teammates Alexander Sironen (48.69), Charles Clark (49.64), and Christian Thomas (49.71), with Seton Hall’s Christopher Tucker placing eighth with a 50.06.

Event 24  Men 100 Yard Backstroke
==================================================================
    Name                  Age School            Prelims     Finals        
==================================================================
                    === Championship Final ===                    
 
  1 Carbone, Andrew M      19 Georgetown          48.22      48.27  
  2 Johanns, Samuel R      22 Xavier              48.59      48.34  
  3 Runyon, Nathan D       21 Xavier              48.27      48.46  
  4 Kelley, Andrew R       21 Villanova           48.64      48.66  
  5 Sironen, Alexander J   19 Xavier              49.06      48.69  
  6 Clark, Charles L       21 Xavier              49.85      49.64  
  7 Thomas, Christian A    19 Xavier              49.96      49.71  
  8 Tucker, Christopher W  22 Seton Hall          49.53      50.06

Men’s 3M Diving

In the night’s only diving event (and the second of the men’s meet), Michael Perra of Villanova took first with 617.70 points, followed by fellow Wildcat Michael Ackert (564.90). Georgetown’s Griffen Edmonds dove a 504.20 for bronze, followed closely by ‘Nova’s Joe Swindal (499.20). Georgetown teammates Ryan Blom (473.40) and Matthew Werner (443.95) took fifth and sixth, with Tim Lynch and Joseph Ianelli of Seton Hall finishing seventh and eighth with a 419.05 and a 396.50, respectively.

Event 26  Men 3 mtr Diving
==================================================================
    Name                  Age School            Prelims     Finals        
==================================================================
                          === Finals ===                          
 
  1 Perra, Michael            Villanova          305.40     617.70  
  2 Ackert, Michael           Villanova          269.15     564.90  
  3 Edmonds, Griffen          Georgetown         243.10     504.20  
  4 Swindal, Joe              Villanova          240.40     499.20  
  5 Blom, Ryan                Georgetown         238.55     473.40  
  6 Werner, Matthew           Georgetown         216.60     443.95  
  7 Lynch, Tim                Seton Hall         224.80     419.05  
  8 Ianelli, Joseph           Seton Hall         189.15     396.50

Women’s 400 Medley Relay

Villanova’s women took another relay win this evening, with Darby Goodwin, Rayann Jaryszak, Kelly Montesi, and Taylor Wilson posting a 3:40.92. Following the Wildcats were Xavier’s Ali Fort, Lydia Schaeffer, Caroline Gaertner, and Emily Conners, touching in at a 3:45.34. (Splits were not accurately available due to errors on the posted results.)

Finishing out the women’s relay were Georgetown (3:48.17), Seton Hall (3:49.98), Butler (3:51.91), and Providence (3:53.18).

Event 27  Women 400 Yard Medley Relay
====================================================================
    School                                 Seed     Finals        
====================================================================
  1 Villanova  'A'                      3:40.90    3:40.92  
     1) Goodwin, Darby E 22           2) Jaryszak, Rayann M 19        
     3) Montesi, Kelly M 18           4) Wilson, Taylor N 22          
  2 Xavier  'A'                         3:44.23    3:45.34  
     1) Fort, Ali M 21                2) Schaeffer, Lydia D 18        
     3) Gaertner, Caroline F 22       4) Conners, Emily A 21          
  3 Georgetown  'A'                     3:49.74    3:48.17  
     1) Chen, Enlin 18                2) Smith, Megan E 19            
     3) Morgan, Dorothy L 22          4) Donohoe, Belinda J 20        
  4 Seton Hall  'A'                     3:51.53    3:49.98  
     1) Stankiewicz, Julie A 19       2) Decker, Jordan E 21          
     3) Calocino, Jillian M 20        4) McCardle, Courtney N 21      
  5 Butler  'A'                         3:52.80    3:51.91  
     1) Hanson, Megan M 19            2) Spotts, Emma L 19            
     3) Van Gheem, Annah R 19         4) Horton, Victoria L 21        
  6 Providence  'A'                     3:58.16    3:53.18  
     1) McGlaughlin, Juliet E 21      2) Czerniecki, Abigail E 22     
     3) Thornton, Katherine R 19      4) Bankes, Jennifer P 18

Men’s 400 Medley Relay

Xavier’s medley team of Nathan Runyon (48.79), Matthew Dyer (53.74), Brandon Abboud (48.38), and Samuel Johanns (43.93) took a vast win over the rest of the pack, with Georgetown’s Andrew Carbone (47.87), Nathaniel Goldfarb (55.17), Justin Summers (49.41), and Jacob Kohlhoff (44.69) finishing second in 3:17.14. Dyer’s breast split, Abboud’s fly split, and Carbone’s back split were all faster than the winning times in the individual events (although Dyer and Carbone were both those individual winners as well).

Seton Hall’s 3:18.51, Villanova’s 3:19.30, and Providence’s 3:26.04 finished out the last heat of the night, closing out an incredibly fast finals session.

Event 28  Men 400 Yard Medley Relay
====================================================================
    School                                 Seed     Finals        
====================================================================
  1 Xavier  'A'                         3:21.71    3:14.84  
     1) Runyon, Nathan D 21           2) Dyer, Matthew S 22           
     3) Abboud, Brandon A 21          4) Johanns, Samuel R 22         
  2 Georgetown  'A'                     3:21.51    3:17.14  
     1) Carbone, Andrew M 19          2) Goldfarb, Nathaniel D 20     
     3) Summers, Justin M 21          4) Kohlhoff, Jacob D 22         
  3 Seton Hall  'A'                     3:22.21    3:18.51  
     1) Tucker, Christopher W 22      2) Tosoni, Josh R 20            
     3) Cosgrove, Liam R 20           4) Williams, Dakota F 21        
  4 Villanova  'A'                      3:22.61    3:19.30  
     1) Kelley, Andrew R 21           2) Prikasky, Francis M 19       
     3) Sabal, Luke T 22              4) Cucchi, Justin M 20          
  5 Providence  'A'                     3:27.20    3:26.04  
     1) McLaughlin, Mark W 19         2) Trammell, Ryan E 21          
     3) Ferrell, Andrew B 19          4) Brannigan, Patrick K 20

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