Oakland vs. Toledo

TOLEDO, Ohio, October 16. AFTER a heartbreaking last-event loss to Illinois on Friday, the Toledo swimming and diving team bounced back with a vengeance to earn their first win of the season, downing Oakland for the sixth-straight year, 177-118.

The Rockets, now 1-1 on the season, won an impressive 11 of the 14 events they competed in (exhibitioned last two events), losing only in the two diving events and the 100 Back event.

Toledo started strong, winning the 200 Medley Relay (1:46.15) with the team of Christina Noens, Laura Lindsay, Amanda Thompson and Rachel Johnson. Toledo also took second in the event with Jacy Dyer, Meredith Gibbon, Kenzie Bagan and Kirstin Stark (1:48.84).

Johnson, competing in only her second career meet for the Rockets, continued to impress, winning both individual events she competed in. She led a 1-2-3-4 Rocket finish in the 200 Free event (1:52.81), followed by Dyer, Megan Friedli and Beth Rogers. She also took first in the 200 Back event (2:05.66), with Noens taking third, just 0:00.02 behind the second-place finisher (2:07.65). Noens also grabbed second in the 100 Back (59.11), the only non-diving event in which the Rockets did not take first.

Lindsay continued her dominance in the breaststroke events, once again winning both the 100 (1:04.35) and 200 (2:20.46) Breast events. Stretching back to last season, Lindsay has now won 23 of her last 25 breaststroke events during the regular season, and is now 4-0 in the event this year. In the 100 Breast, Lindsay was followed by Gibbon in second place (1:07.31) and in the 200 Breast by Kirsten Smith in third place (2:27.82).

Sophomore Carly Harter, after winning three events on Friday, added two more victories on Saturday winning both the 50 (24.08) and 100 (52.37) Free events. Harter also would have won the 200 IM event, but raced the event as an exhibition. Harter's victory in the 50 Free was part of a 1-2-3 Rocket finish as she was followed by Thompson (24.62) and Stark (24.93). Thompson also finished runner-up to Harter in the 100 Free event (53.50).

In the Butterfly events, Toledo dominated behind a 1-2-3 finish in the 200 Fly and a 1-2-3-4 finish in the 100 Fly. Bagan took first in the 200 Fly (2:07.15), followed closely by Louise Smyth (second, 2:08.05) and Laura Benevento (third, 2:09.27). Thompson captured first in the 100 event (56.93), with Bagan (58.33), Rogers (1:00.17) and Benevento (1:00.33) rounding out the sweep.

In the 1000 Free event, junior Claire Leichty stepped up in the absence of ailing captain and record-holder Dyer, shaving :07 seconds off her time from Friday and winning the event (10:08.56). Senior captain Laura Heckroth took third in the event (10:20.93) and Smyth took fourth (10:23.30). Dyer was able to compete in the 500 Free – an event in which she also holds the record – and pulled off a final-lap comeback to take first (4:58.91) while Leichty finished third (5:04.22).

The Rockets face a tough match-up next weekend, as they host the perennial Big-10 powerhouse, Michigan, on Oct. 22 at 5:00 p.m. at the UT Student Recreation Center Pool.

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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