Big East Championships: Georgetown Men, Villanova Women Claim Titles

Photo Courtesy: Big East

The Georgetown men and Villanova women came out on top of the Big East Conference Championships last weekend in Indianapolis.

The Hoyas put up a dominant 859.5 points, nearly 100 more than second place Xavier, for their third consecutive conference title. The Wildcats produced 1482.5 points, just edging out a victory over Connecticut, which followed with 1461.5.

On the women’s side, Georgetown senior Erin Hood was the high-point scorer in the Big East. Hood turned in first-place finishes in both the 200 breast (2:13.10) and 400 IM (4:16.56), as well as a lifetime best in the 200 IM that was good for silver. She also swam a leg on the Hoyas’ winning 400 free relay team, splitting a 50.95.

The men’s high-point scorer was another Georgetown swimmer, junior Jack Januario. Januario’s lifetime best swims in the 400 IM (3:48.48) and 500 free (4:22.43) earned him two gold medals. He turned in another lifetime best in the 1650 free (15:25.90) where he placed third. While Hood and Januario had great showings for the Hoyas, there were a multitude of impressive swims from across the board throughout the weekend.

Day One

The meet kicked off on Wednesday evening with the 200 medley and 800 free relays. The Xavier quartet of Reese Turner, Jordyn Libler, Erin Ritz and Olivia Oyster claimed the top spot in the medley relay with a final time of 1:39.95, making them the only team in the field under 1:40. They were followed by Villanova (1:40.60) and Seton Hall (1:42.76).

The Xavier men’s relay of Gage Hannewyk, Ethan Saunders, Aiden Leamer and CJ Sorensen also had a strong showing in this event, seizing first place in 1:27.23. Georgetown (1:28.05) and Seton Hall (1:28.31) were second and third, respectively.

It was once again a showdown between Villanova and Xavier in the women’s 800 free relay. Despite Clara Keiser splitting an impressive 1:47.54 as Xavier’s final leg, the Musketeers were unable to catch the Wildcats. The Villanova team of Molly Benson (who also had an extremely strong split of 1:46.82, giving the Wildcats a near three second lead), Mary Kate Farrell, Marlene Blanke and Lauryn Johnson grabbed first place with a final time of 7:15.39. They finished just ahead of Xavier, who posted a final time of 7:16.03. Georgetown was third in 7:21.57. The Xavier men, however, picked up their second relay victory of the evening. Kyle Hudson, Luke Peterson, Ryan Knipp and Nathan Wall took home the gold in 6:32.72. They were multiple seconds ahead of the next best finishers – Georgetown (6:35.76) and Villanova (6:36.84).

Day Two

Thursday evening’s session began with the 500 freestyle, where the top six finishers all turned in lifetime bests. Seton Hall junior Allie Waggoner took first in 4:47.52. Molly Benson was second in 4:49.22. Georgetown freshman Kira Agne had an outstanding swim (4:50.02), moving from the seventh seed to grab the bronze medal. Agne will be a name to watch in her future years in the conference. The top three places in the men’s 500 were all within just over a second of each other, making it a tightly packed race. Once again, the majority of swimmers in the race produced lifetime bests. In the end, though, Jack Januario (4:22.43) beat out Seton Hall’s Sean Vizzard (4:23.01) to pick up a win for Georgetown. Villanova’s Charlie Hinckley was third in 4:23.70.

Villanova’s Audrey Pastorek had a monumental swim in the finals of the 200 IM. The senior broke the 2:00 barrier for the first time in her career, turning in a 1:59.20 and grabbing the gold. Second place went to Georgetown senior Erin Hood (2:00.14), who also clocked a new lifetime best. Georgetown sophomore Angelica Reali was right behind her teammate, finishing in a time of 2:00.53 that was good for third place. On the men’s side, another Villanova senior had an exceptional race. Nolan Danus took first with a Villanova record of 1:46.87, besting the rest of the field by well over 1.5 seconds. Behind him was Georgetown junior Jack Brearton (1:48.41) and sophomore Nick Pezzella (1:48.98). With both Brearton and Pezzella returning to the conference next year, it will make for an exciting matchup in 2025.

Excitingly, the top two finishers in the women’s 50 freestyle were underclassmen. Sophomore Olivia Oyster returned to the pool after anchoring Xavier’s winning 200 medley relay the night before. In the preliminaries, Oyster turned in a blistering 22.52, just a few tenths shy of the meet record. As for the finals session, Oyster claimed the top spot in 22.61. She was followed by Villanova freshman Carlota Colomer in 22.99. Notably, however, is the fact that there was a tie for third place between Connecticut junior Maggie Donlevy and Georgetown freshman Madeline Malone, who both finished in 23.10. In the men’s 50 freestyle, senior Will Layden put Providence College on the board with an impressive 19.66 for the win. Georgetown fifth-year Shaun Kronewetter (20.03) was second. Yet another freshman made his way onto the 50 freestyle podium as Seton Hall’s Toma Adam took third in 20.28.

Day Two concluded with the 200 freestyle relay. Despite being seeded fourth going into the timed finals, the Villanova women (Carlota Colomer, Lainey Quinones, Molly Benson and Lauryn Johnson) came out on top of the field with a time of 1:32.26. This was a huge win for the Lady Wildcats, as they just edged out both Xavier (1:32.38) and Georgetown (1:32.53). In the men’s relay, the Xavier team of CJ Sorensen, Ethan Saunders, Matt Adanin and Gage Hannewyk placed first in 1:20.10, as their final three swimmers all split sub-20. They were followed by Providence College (1:20.85) and Georgetown (1:21.22).

Day Three

Friday’s finals session kicked off with a close showdown in the women’s 100 fly. Villanova sophomore Arabella Lee came away with the win in 53.31, just ahead of Xavier senior Erin Ritz (53.52). Both of the top-two in the field produced lifetime best swims in the close race. Georgetown sophomore Angelica Reali was third in a season-best 54.14. Seton Hall’s Michael Klimaszewski had an exceptional swim in the race, finishing first in 46.47. Considering that Klimaszewski is only a sophomore, it will be exciting to watch his next two years as he potentially gets closer to the meet record of 46.44. Xavier’s Aiden Leamer, also a sophomore, was second in 47.67, and Georgetown junior John McEachern was third in 48.25. With all three hitting lifetime bests and returning to the meet in 2025, the stage is set for yet another great race next season.

Erin Hood and Allie Waggoner both picked up their second individual top-3 finishes of the weekend in the women’s 400 IM. Hood finished in 4:16.56, securing the conference title. Second place went to Villanova freshman Meghan Tiernan in 4:17.29. Tiernan will certainly be a swimmer to watch in the Big East over the next three years. Despite being seventh in the prelims, Waggoner was able to grab third place in 4:18.19. Jack Januario also grabbed his second individual win of the meet in the event, finishing in 3:48.48. He was over a full second ahead of Nolan Danus, who took home the silver medal in 3:49.63. Villanova freshman Ben Tunila turned in a time of 3:52.30 as he got third place.

Seniors Molly Benson and Clara Keiser battled it out in the women’s 200 freestyle final. Benson touched the wall in 1:48.08, with Keiser right on her heels in 1:48.66. Georgetown’s Maddie Bauer came in third with a time of 1:49.10. Remarkably, the top six swimmers in the field were all under the 1:50 mark. The Xavier men had a very impressive showing in the event. Sophomore Kyle Hudson took first in 1:37.20, and freshman Luke Peterson was second in 1:37.68. Seton Hall’s Kevin Cary was third in 1:38.17.

In the women’s 100 breaststroke, Xavier sophomore Jordyn Libler got her first individual win of the weekend with a massive lifetime best of 1:01.26. Connecticut senior Angela Gambardella was second in 1:02.44, and Villanova’s Maggie Kleinsmith was third in 1:03.15. On the men’s side, Xavier’s Ethan Saunders was first in 53.69 while Georgetown’s Bailey De Luise (54.38) and Ansen Meyer (54.71) picked up critical points in the second and third place spots.

After tying for third place in the 50 freestyle on Thursday, Maggie Donlevy came out on top of the women’s 100 backstroke. She finished in a lifetime best of 53.21, over a half-second ahead of Villanova senior Audrey Pastorek (53.82). While Donlevy’s swim marked the first individual gold for a Connecticut swimmer of the weekend, the Huskies also grabbed third as Kayla Mendonca finished in 54.70. John McEachern grabbed another set of first place points for the Hoyas, clocking in at 48.75. Seton Hall freshman Nick Rhodes had an outstanding showing in the race, falling short of McEachern by only about a tenth of a second. Matt Adanin was third in 49.44.

With the battle between Connecticut and Villanova heating up, the 400 medley relay became an extremely important event for both teams. Despite being seeded third, the Huskies (Maggie Donlevy, Angela Gambardella, Ella Epes and Claire Lippert) had a remarkable swim, dropping nearly 3 seconds off of their seed time to finish in 3:40.88 and grab the gold. Their win was rather dominant, as Villanova was nearly two seconds behind in 3:42.68, and Georgetown was third in 3:43.08. The win was a statement for Connecticut going into the final day of the meet. In the men’s relay, Xavier (Matt Adanin, Ethan Saunders, Aiden Leamer and Kyle Hudson) came out on top with a time of 3:13.94. They were followed by Seton Hall (3:15.26) and Georgetown (3:17.18).

DAY Four

On Saturday, the final day of the meet, Allie Waggoner picked up her second win of the weekend in the 1650 free. Her time of 16:18.01 was more than 10 seconds faster than her previous lifetime best. Waggoner’s swim dominated the field, as Villanova freshman Marlene Blanke finished second in 16:40.67. Blanke is yet another freshman that put her name on the Big East radar during the meet. Third went to Connecticut sophomore Norah Rome in 16:44.67. The Seton Hall men claimed the top two spots in the mile, as Sean Vizzard took first in 15:06.95 and Clil Halevi took second in 15:10.40. Both of the Pirates had lifetime best swims. Georgetown standout Jack Januario was third in his own lifetime best of 15:25.90.

The Lady Huskies made additional critical moves in the 200 backstroke. While Audrey Pastorek of Villanova was first in 1:55.48, Connecticut’s Bella Hoffman (1:56.69) and Kayla Mendonca (1:59.20) took second and third, respectively. With her medal-winning swim, Pastorek joined the pool of athletes who turned in multiple top-3 finishes over the course of the weekend. The race was a closely fought battle on the men’s side, as Xavier’s Michael Benington (1:47.07) just edged out Villanova’s Aubrey Bowles (1:47.24) for the win. Georgetown’s John McEachern was third in 1:48.52.

Olivia Oyster brought home her second individual win of the meet in the 100 freestyle, turning in a time of 50.07. She was just a few hundredths ahead of her Xavier teammate Alexis Worrall (50.12). Even closer behind was Connecticut’s Maggie Donlevy, who took third in 50.15. The A-final was an extremely close race altogether, as every finisher was between 50 and 51 seconds. Providence College’s Will Layden also grabbed his second win of the weekend in the men’s 100 free. With his time of 44.11, he out-touched Georgetown’s Shaun Kronenwetter (44.52) and Kyle Hudson (44.58). Every swimmer in the men’s A-final produced a lifetime best time.

While Jordyn Libler may have gotten the win in the 100 breaststroke, she battled it out with Erin Hood for the top spot in the 200. At the end of the race, despite both swimmers going lifetime bests in the race, it was Hood who came away with the gold in a time of 2:13.10. Libler was right behind in 2:13.54, adding her to the list of swimmers with multiple top-3 individual finishes. Third place went to Angela Gambardella in 2:15.16, who also joined the group. Ethan Saunders won the race on the men’s side in 1:57.80, securing his second top-3 finish. Georgetown picked up important points in the next two places, as Nick Pezzella (1:58.87) got second and Ansen Meyer (1:59.72) got his second third place finish of the weekend.

After just getting edged out of a win in the 100 butterfly, Xavier senior Erin Ritz was able to rally at the end of the weekend for a first-place finish in the 200. Ritz turned in a dominant lifetime best of 1:57.49. She was followed by Villanova’s Katie White (1:59.27) and Xavier freshman Norah Simich (2:00.09). Xavier sophomore, Aiden Leamer, grabbed his first conference title of the weekend in the event with a time of 1:44.81. Seton Hall’s Michael Klimazewski, who won the 100 fly earlier on in the weekend, placed second in 1:45.73. Nolan Danus grabbed his third individual top-3 finish of the meet with his third place finish in 1:46.90.

The final event of the meet was the 400 freestyle relay. The women’s race was exceptionally close, with Georgetown (Madie Malone, Maddie Bauer, Erin Hood and Isabella Wylie) and Xavier finishing 1-2 in 3:22.68 and 3:22.75, respectively. Third place went to the overall team champion, Villanova, in 3:23.77. The overall men’s runner-up, Xavier, got the win in the men’s relay (CJ Sorensen, Ethan Saunders, Gage Hannewyk and Kyle Hudson) in 2:58.29, just ahead of second place Seton Hall (2:58.42). The overall men’s team champion, Georgetown, was third in 2:59.51.

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