Vermont Swimming Sweeps Central Connecticut State, Merrimack

BURLINGTON – Vermont swimming swept Central Connecticut State (163-130) and Merrimack (136-56) in a double dual meet.

Vermont Press Release

The University of Vermont swimming and diving team topped Central Connecticut State (163-130) and Merrimack (136-56) in a double dual meet Saturday at Forbush Natatorium. With the pair of victories, Vermont improves to 6-1 on the season.

The Catamounts set two Forbush Natatorium pool records on the afternoon. In the first event of the meet, the relay squad of Jess Gorham, Shannon Cowley, Courtney Gray and Christa Weaver set a new record in the 400 medley relay in 3:55.55. Cowley also broke the pool record in the 100 breast, placing first with a time of 1:05.28.

Junior Andie Blaser notched a pair of victories at the meet to help lead the Catamounts to victory. She raced to a first-place finish in the 100 fly with a time of 57.51, and also took the top spot in the 100 free in 52.89. Blaser was followed by Weaver (53.24) and Katie Adams (53.99), as the Catamounts earned the top three spots in the 100 free.

UVM also finished 1-2-3 in the 200 back, led by Ilsa Feierabend, who touched the wall in 2:06.70 to claim first place. Elena Melloni (2:08.58) and Gorham (2:11.31) finished behind Feierabend to earn second and third-place showings, respectively.

On the boards, Maggie Preston swept the diving competition for the fourth consecutive meet as she posted victories in both events. Preston notched the top score in the 1-meter (232.72), and followed with a victory in the 3-meter (243.97) to top all divers.

Weaver placed first in the 50 free with a time of 24.08, and rookie Alexy Novelli earned a first-place showing in the 200 fly in 2:09.45 to round out the Catamount victories.

The meet was UVM’s Rally Against Cancer Meet, presented by Otter Creek Awnings and Vermont Custom Closets. The Catamounts wore pink swim caps and t-shirts to help raise awareness for breast cancer research. All proceeds from the Rally Against Cancer initiative benefit the Vermont Cancer Center.

Central Connecticut State Press Release

The Central Connecticut women’s swimming and diving team split its first tri-meet of the season on Saturday afternoon at the University of Vermont. Merrimack was the other school joining the Blue Devils and Catamounts. The Blue Devils defeated Merrimack by a score of 247-28, but lost to Vermont 163-130. CCSU moves its record to 3-2 on the season with the split.

The Blue Devils recorded seven gold medals on the afternoon in 16 events. Central was led by junior Selene Chilton and freshman Maddy Garber, who both recorded two victories at the meet.

Chilton got the Blue Devils their first gold medal of the meet in the 1000 yard freestyle. She touched the wall first in the event with a time of 10:41.49, almost nine seconds faster than the second place swimmer. Chilton recorded her other first place finish in the 500 yard freestyle, finishing with a time of 5:13.74.

Garber swam to a first place finish in both the 200 yard breaststroke and the 200 yard IM. In the 200 breaststroke Garber touched the wall first with a time of 2:22.33. In the 200 IM she finished with a time of 2:11.97. Garber also had a runner-up performance in the 100 yard breaststroke. She swam the race in 1:05.31, just three tenths of a second behind the gold medalist.

Sophomore Christine Rasile and senior Helene Neuhaus also picked up individual swimming victories at the meet. Rasile won the 200 yard freestyle event with a time of 1:56.39 and Neuhaus recorded a gold medal by touching the wall in 59.40 in the 100 yard backstroke.

Rasile and Neuhaus also recorded a first place finish as members of the 400 yard freestyle relay team. Freshmen Lauren Czulewicz and Lauren Rasile accompanied the two on the gold medal team and they finished with a time of 3:41.74.

Senior Kaitlyn Dwyer and junior Kaitlyn Beaver led the Blue Devils from the diving board at the meet. Dwyer led CCSU from the 1-meter board finishing with a score of 219.66 to record a second place finish. She also finished fourth from the 3-meter board with a score of 205.19.

Beaver scored 221.54 points from the 3-meter board to record a second place finish for the Blue Devils. She also had a fourth place finish from the 1-meter board with a score of 216.74.

CCSU Swim and Dive will return to action all next weekend for the Frank Elm Invitational, hosted by Rutgers, on Nov. 21-23.

Merrimack Press Release

Led by a second-place finish in the 400-yard freestyle relay, the Merrimack College women’s swim team dropped a pair of decisions in a tri-meet against the University of Vermont and Central Connecticut State on Saturday.

The Basics
Top Performers: Carly Anne Forrester, Erin Lydon, Julia Collins, Nora Pance (2nd place | 400 freestyle relay)
Team Scores: Vermont 136, Merrimack 56 | Central Connecticut State 247, Merrimack 28
Location: University of Vermont | Burlington, Vt.

How It Happened
In just their second year of competition as a varsity program, the Warriors were able to take second place in the 400 freestyle relay, besting Division I Vermont’s A and B teams. Carly Anne Forrester (Sandwich, Mass.), Erin Lydon (Waltham, Mass.), Julia Collins (North Reading, Mass.) and Nora Pance (Dorchester, Mass.) finished with a time of 4:56.

Individual entries for the Warriors included Jennifer Belanger (South Windsor, Conn.) in the 1000-yard freestyle. Ireland Wilson (Niantic, Conn.), Caroline Rogers (Westwood Mass.), Kendra Van Pelt (Burlington, Iowa) and Lydon swam in the 200-yard freestyle while Pance and Collins both took part in the 100-yard backstroke and Forrester swam in the 100-yard breaststroke.

Genesis Garcia (Lawrence, Mass.) saw her first varsity action and was one of four Merrimack swimmers in the 50-yard freestyle, along with Pance, Rogers and Van Pelt. Forrester and Lydon both raced in the 500 freestyle and Belanger was also in the pool for the 100 butterfly.

Up Next
The Warriors will be off until Dec. 5 when they’ll hit the pool in Worcester for the WPI Gompei Invitational.

Results: Vermont vs. Central Connecticut State vs. Merrimack

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