Michigan Women Hold Slim Lead Over Ohio State After Day One Of Dual

Knoxville, TN - December 7, 2013: University of Michigan Swimmer during the 2013 AT&T Swimming Winter National Championships on December 7, 2013 in Knoxville, Tennessee at the Allan Jones Aquatic Center. Photo By Matthew DeMaria/Tennessee Athletics

COLUMBUS, Ohio, January 31. MICHIGAN holds a slim four-point lead over Big Ten rival Ohio State following day one of their two-day dual meet in Columbus. The Wolverines won six events tonight while Ohio State claimed four. The meet concludes tomorrow with nine more events and a senior recognition ceremony for Ohio State’s seniors.

Ohio State Press Release

The 16th-ranked Ohio State women’s swimming and diving team (8-1, 1-1 Big Ten) trails No. 20 Michigan by four points following the first evening of action between the rival programs. The Buckeyes claimed four first-place finishes Friday at McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion to build a score of 91 points. The dual-meet will resume Saturday at 11 a.m.

Ohio State opened the meet with a second-place showing in the 400 medley relay. The relay contingent of Erin Dunseith, Taylor Vargo, Aliena Schmidtke and Michelle Williams touched in 3:44.59, earning four points toward the squad’s overall total.

Senior Kelly Ann Baird picked up the Scarlet and Gray’s first win of the evening with a 9:52.43-performance in the 1000 freestyle. Ohio State garnered 14 points in the event after finishing one, two in the standings. Freshman Lindsey Clary posted a season-best time of 9:56.60 in the event for the runner-up spot.

In the 200 freestyle, the Buckeyes dominated the event’s top-three times. Senior Alex Norris touched first in 1:47.44, a NCAA “B” cut time. She was followed closely by teammates Katy Luchansky and Phoebe Cater, who took second in 1:49.72 and third in 1:50.05, respectively.

Michigan retaliated in the 100 backstroke, sweeping the first three spots. Dunseith recorded the top Buckeye time in the event with a mark of 55.94 for fourth.

Vargo, a freshman this season, completed the 100 breaststroke in 1:03.68, good for a second-place finish. Ohio State claimed in the next three top-times in the event behind swims from Ashley Vance (3rd, 1:04.08), Rachael Dzierzak (4th, 1:04.41) and Maren Reeder (5th, 1:04.54).

The freshmen class for Ohio State continued its strong swimming for the meet with a third-place showing in the 200 butterfly by Amy Bopp. A native of Clifton Park, N.Y., Bopp recorded a time of 2:02.20 in the event.

In the 50 freestyle, a pair of Buckeyes – Annie Jongekrijg and Michelle Williams – earned the top-two times. Jongekrijg touched in 23.15, while Williams finished with a time of 23.16. Ohio State followed it up with a second-place finish from Norris (2:01.79). It was a season-best time for the Buckeye senior in the event.

The final event for the evening was the 200 freestyle relay. Ohio State claimed first behind a relay of Williams, Jongekrijg, Dzierzak and Schmidtke. The group finished with a time of 1:32.30.

In diving action, junior Taylor Ford placed second on the three-meter apparatus with a final score of 297.38.

The Buckeyes will recognize an outstanding group of six seniors – Kelly Ann Baird, Phoebe Cater, Mary Sarah Cruzan, Kristyn Fulcher, Alex Norris and Michelle Williams – before the continuation of meet tomorrow morning.

Michigan Press Release

The No. 21-ranked University of Michigan women’s swimming and diving team holds a 95-91 edge over No. 19 Ohio State after Friday’s (Jan. 31) first night of competition at the two-day dual held at the McCorkle Aquatics Pavilion. The two squads will be back in the water on Saturday (Feb. 1) for nine more events.

Nebraska had to cancel its appearance at the meet due to some travel complications, turning the double dual into a straight dual between the Wolverines and Buckeyes. A release on Huskers.com indicated weather caused problems with Nebraska’s flight. Michigan and Nebraska have yet to meet as Big Ten Conference opponents.

Michigan put 13 points on the board in the first event of the night with a first and a third-place finish in the 400-yard medley relay. The first-place relay of sophomore Ali DeLoof (Grosse Pointe, Mich./Grosse Pointe South), Senior Angela Chokran (South Elgin, Ill./St. Charles North), sophomore Zoe Mattingly (Zionsville, Ind./Zionsville) and freshman Julia Fiks Salem (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Domus Sapientiae) finished in 3:41.71, nearly three seconds faster than OSU’s second place relay (3:44.59).

Michigan’s backstroke depth shown through in the 100-yard backstroke. DeLoof touched first at 54.02, and was followed closely by teammates junior Claudia Lau (Hong Kong, China/Dicoesan Girls’ School) in second and Mattingly in third.

The meet was tight throughout, with ties of 37 points after four events and 75 points after eight events.

U-M kept pace with several other first-place finishes. Chokran won an individual event of her own, taking the 100-yard breaststroke in 1:02.75. Senior Courtney Beidler (Richboro, Pa./Council Rock South) bested the field in the 200-yard butterfly (2:00.74) with sophomore Marni Oldershaw (Oakville, Ontario/Iroquois Ridge) right behind her (2:01.02) for second place. Oldershaw then outraced everyone else to take top honors in the 200-yard individual medley (2:00.37).

Michigan climbed into the lead at the end of day one thanks to its divers, who went 1-3-4 in the three-meter springboard competition. Junior Carey Chen (Vancouver, British Columbia/University Hill Secondary) setting the pace; her score of 300.08 edged OSU’s Taylor Ford, who scored a 297.38. Junior Nicole Honey (New Hyde Park, N.Y./Herricks) and sophomore Sarah Kamstra (Zeeland, Mich./Zeeland West) placed third and fourth, respectively.

The Wolverines conclude the double dual tomorrow (Saturday, Feb. 1) with Ohio State at the McCorkle Aquatics Pavilion. The No. 1 Michigan men’s swimming and diving team will also be competing against the No. 9 Ohio State men’s team. The meet begins at 11 a.m. Follow @umichswimdive on Twitter for in-meet “Aquatics Analysis” from the Michigan coaching staff. Use the hashtag #UMDeckPass.

Results For: Michigan vs. Ohio State

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