Youngstown State vs. Ohio

ATHENS, Ohio, January 7. SHOWING no signs of slumping after nearly a month long break from competition, the Ohio University swimming and diving team captured its third victory of the season Friday night, as the Bobcats defeated Youngstown State 177-116. The `Cats improved to 3-2 overall, (2-1 MAC), as many Ohio swimmers posted impressive performances.

“I was very happy with what I saw today,” said head coach Greg Werner. “We challenged them to make the adjustments and improve upon the things that stood out at the Akron Invitational. ”

Ohio got the ball rolling in the 400 Medley Relay with dominating performances from both squads. The Rachel Stearns (Minnetonka, Minn.), Katie Power (Ottawa, Ontario), Katey Brooks (North Royalton, Ohio), and Caroline Meyer (Holland, Mich.) combination finished first with a time of 4:02.71, followed by Rachel Heim (San Diego, Calif.) Abby Corcoran (Tucson, Ariz.), Lauren Funk (Springfield, Ohio), and Kristyn Repke (Cary, N.C.) who took second with a time of 4:03.14.

Laurin Williams (Shoreline, Wash.) and Petra Chomicz (King’s Lynn, Norfolk, England) flexed their muscles in the 1000 Free as they finished first and second with times of 10:15.45 and 10:30.76, respectively.

“For some it’s tough to come into a meet after a long break,” said Werner. “For some it’s not and it just depends on the person and mindset, but it also depends on how our training went and our health. But you have to get it going at some point.”

The 200 Free saw three Ohio swimmers take the top spots. Stacy Huber (Gainesville, Fla.) lead the way in first place with a time of 1:54.33, while Amanda Cecere (Chemlsford, Mass.) and Annie Donovan (Findlay, Ohio) placed second and third with times of 1:57.19 and 1:58.50, respectively.

Corcoran was brilliant again in the 100 Back as she finished first with a time of 58.79, while Repke followed closely behind in second place with a 1:01.39. Liz Bishop (Hales Corners, Wisc.) and Stella Johnson (Jacksonville, Fla.) took second and third in the 100 Breast with times of 1:08.82 and 1:11.90, respectively.

The 200 Fly again saw two Bobcats atop the list as Deidre Geroni (Emmaus, Pa.) and Megan Gegesky (Grosse Ile, Mich) took first and second with times of 2:09.65 and 2:11.00, respectively. The trio of Funk, Brooks, and Kristen Witahm (Fort Wayne, Ind.) made its presence known in the 50 Free as they finished first, second, and third with times of 24.40, 24.51, and 25.02, respectively.

Anastasia Bocharnikova (Nizhny Tagil, Russia) was the lone Bobcat who placed in the 100 Free, as she won the event with a time of 53.97, her first time competing in the event this season. Corcoran found herself in first place once again in the 200 Back with a time of 2:15.96, while Bishop took second in the 200 Breast with a 2:28.50. Chomicz and Meyer both finished first in the 500 Free and 100 Fly with times of 5:10.88 and 59.04, respectively.

The Bobcat diving squad of Lindsay Hamilton (White City, Saskatchewan), Kristin Capcik (Milwaukee, Wisc.), and Alexa Gordish (North Canton, Ohio) also posted impressive performances on both boards. Hamilton won both events with final scores of 293.69 on the 1 meter and 279.90 on the 3 meter. Gordish took third on the 1 meter with a 226.05 and fourth on the 3 meter with a 218.85, while Capcik finished fourth on the 1 meter with a 215.92 and third on the 3 meter with a 231.15.

Ohio finished the meet with a first-place finish in the 400 Freestyle Relay, as Donovan, Meyer, Repke, and Bocharnikova finished with a 3:35.82. Coach Werner said he is optimistic about the back-to-back weekend meets.

“Any time you do back-to-back meets it gives you the opportunity to cover a lot of events,” said Werner. So that’s what we saw tonight. We’re able to try some different things, spread out, and just make the best of our opportunities.”

The `Cats return to the Aquatic Center tomorrow afternoon to take on the Denison Big Red. Action is set to begin at 1 p.m.

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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