West Virginia Men, Villanova Women Claim Victories in Dual

In the 200 butterfly, senior Jack Frazier finished first for the men with a time of 1:52.31.

The Wildcats of Villanova University traveled across state lines to take on the Mountaineers of West Virginia University in a Thursday afternoon dual meet. The teams split the competition, with the WVU men taking the meet and the Villanova women doing the same.

SCORES

WVU men – 195, Villanova men – 96

Villanova women – 156, WVU women, 144

Results

West Virginia Recap

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams split a pair of dual meets against Villanova on Thursday afternoon, at the Aquatic Center at Mylan in Morgantown.

The men’s team was victorious over the Wildcats, earning a score of 195-96, while the women fell, 156-144. In total, West Virginia tallied 25-of-32 event victories on the day, as freshman Hunter Armstrong led the way with four total wins, including two solos, in the contest. Eight Mountaineers tallied multiple victories, and 18 different Mountaineers earned a victory against the Wildcats.

“Overall, our men swam really well, and they continue to get themselves in a good spot for Big 12s in a few weeks,” WVU coach Vic Riggs said. “On the women’s side, I feel like we let this one slip away. The divers once again did a great job on the boards to really keep the meet within reach. For the swimmers, we had some really great swims despite the loss. I think we came away with what we know we need to do on Saturday to get a win.”

West Virginia began the meet with a pair of victories in the 400 medley relay. Junior Ally VanNetta, freshman Mathilde Kaelbel, senior Morgan Bullock and freshman Emily Haimesgrabbed the win for the ladies (3:47.59) and junior Angelo Russo, sophomore Fausto Huerta, senior Sam Neaveill and Armstrong secured it for the men (3:19.80).

In the 1,000 freestyle, senior Alex Pampalone paced WVU in the women’s event, with a fourth-place time of 10:44.50. Junior Max Gustafson secured the victory for the men after touching the pads in 9:35.64, a new pool record at the Aquatic Center.

Armstrong tallied another win for the Mountaineers in the 200 free (1:40.75), while Haimes finished second on the women’s side (1:52.20) and junior Giselle Gursoy followed in third (1:54.36). WVU grabbed a pair of wins in the 100 backstroke. VanNetta grabbed the win for the ladies (57.04) and Russo (48.63) led the way for the men.

Kaelbel took second place in the women’s 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:06.16, before the men posted a dominating finish in their event. Huerta led the way for a 1-2-3 Mountaineer finish with a time of 56.54. Sophomore Ben Brooks (58.51) and freshman Conrad Molinaro (58.57) complete the WVU sweep.

West Virginia tallied four more wins in the 200 butterfly and 50 freestyle events just before the first break. Bullock paced the women in the 200 fly in 2:02.19 and senior Jack Frazierfinished first for the men with a time of 1:52.31. In the 50 free, senior Julia Nilton picked up her first win of the afternoon after touching the wall in 23.91, while junior Ryen Van Wykfinished in 20.96 for the men.

In the diving well, West Virginia earned a pair of sweeps in the women’s 3-meter and the men’s 1-meter springboard events. Sophomore Camille Burt paced the women, taking first with a score of 280.95. Freshman Holly Darling followed in second with a mark of 275.70, while junior Callie Smith placed third (259.65). For the men, redshirt senior Austin Smithtallied his second straight victory on 1-meter, earning a total of 304.58. Redshirt sophomore Jacob Cardinal Tremblay took second (279.30) and sophomore PJ Lenz finished third (279.00).

Burt again led the way for the women on 1-meter, as she notched a score of 271.35. Darling took second place on the event with a 251.55 mark. For the men, Lenz secured first place on 3-meter to lead his team, earning a score of 308.33.

“I’m really proud of the divers today,” diving coach Michael Grapner said. “The team enthusiasm and pride each of the divers displayed was what helped them perform so well. When I talk to the divers, I remind them to compete with confidence and consistency. My hope is that they will take today’s results and set goals for Saturday’s contest.”

Back in the competition pool, Armstrong added his second solo victory of the day in the 100 free with a time of 45.04, while Haimes finished second in 51.15 in the women’s race. Next, VanNetta earned another win in the 200 back in 2:03.99. Senior Trayton Saladin tallied a victory for the men in the event as well, finishing in 1:50.55.

Another pair of wins came WVU’s way in the 200 breast events, where Kaelbel (2:21.65) and Huerta (2:07.35) led the way for the women’s and men’s teams, respectively. Gustafson then picked up his second victory of the day in the 500 free with a time of 4:41.97. Sophomore Reka Kovacs paced the women with a fourth-place, 5:11.85 showing.

West Virginia added five more victories across the final events of the afternoon. First, in the 100 fly, Bullock (55.18) and Russo (48.63) grabbed wins for the women and men, respectively. In the 200 individual medley, Bullock was edged in the event by Villanova, as she settled for second (2:04.73). Junior Philip Kay picked up the victory in the men’s event in 1:53.68.

The day concluded with the 200 freestyle relay. The women’s team of Nilton, freshmen Harna Minezawa and Ginger Hansen and Haimes finished in second place, as they combined to post a time of 1:34.80. In the men’s event, Armstrong, Van Wyk, Neaveill and junior Christopher O’Shea closed the day with a victory in 1:22.01.

With Thursday’s victory, the Mountaineer men’s team improves to 4-1 in dual meets, while the squad remains at 1-0 in the Big 12. The win was the seventh consecutive victory over the Wildcats for the men’s team. The women fall to 2-3 in dual-meet competition, and they are 2-0 in the Big 12.

The Mountaineers have just one day off before returning to competition for the final meet of the regular season. West Virginia hosts George Washington on Saturday, Feb. 1, beginning at 11 a.m. ET, at the Aquatic Center at Mylan Park. Saturday also is senior day for the Mountaineers, as the squads will honor their 15 senior members.

For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUSwimDive on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.

Villanova Recap

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – As the regular season is winding down and so is the number of dual meets on Villanova swimming and diving’s schedule. On Jan. 30, the Wildcats competed at their penultimate such meet at West Virginia. The result of the meet was a mixed bag, as the women came away with a 156-144 victory, while the men fell 195-96.

Like earlier meets this season, the Wildcats dominated distance events. Nicole Welch, Emily Provenzo and Brenna McLaughlin went first, second and third in both the 1,000 freestyle and 500 freestyle.

Milly Routledge touched the wall first in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:50.77. The junior also swam 50.76 in the 100 freestyle. She, along with Abbey Berloco, Anastasia Kontrimas and Perri Stahl, also took first in the 200-freestyle relay with a time of 1:34.23. Rayann Jaryszak won the 100 breaststroke in 1:05.84 and also took third in the 200 IM. Kelly Montesi went 2:03.35 to win the 200 IM and also took second in the 200 butterfly.

Villanova went second and third in the 400-medley relay. They also took second and third in the 200 breaststroke, 50 freestyle, 100 butterfly and the backstroke events. Kaitlin Gravell went 1:06.37 in the 100 breaststroke, while Berloco swam 52.19 in the 100 freestyle. Bridie Dunn scored 251.03 in the 1m dive.

For the men, Jake McIntyre finished second in both the 1,000 and 500 freestyle. Kevin Geist took third in the 500 free with a time of 4:54.42. In the 100 freestyle, Reid Hutcherson and Ryan Maherboth swam 48.98 for second, while Nick Fiddler went 49.49. Fiddler also took third in the 100 butterfly with a time of 51.86.

Jackson Kabas took second in the 200 IM with a time of 1:58.79 and also finished third in the 200 breaststroke in 2:17.65. Villanova finished second and third in the 3m dive thanks to Michael Perra(268.43) and Michael Ackert (151.93). Andrew Kelley edged Justin Cucchi for second in the 200 backstroke, 1:55.09 to 1:55.11. Stephen Krecsmar registered two second-place finishes in the 50 freestyle and 100 butterfly, while Francis Prikasky took second in the 200 breaststroke. Villanova also went second and third in the 200-freestyle relay. John Davidson finished third in the 200 IM.

The Wildcats will see action again tomorrow as they travel to Penn State for a 4:00 p.m. meet.

Name*

Email*

Welcome to our community. We invite you to join our discussion. Our community guidelines are simple: be respectful and constructive, keep on topic, and support your fellow commenters. Commenting signifies that you agree to our Terms of Use