Emory Swimmers & Divers Record 15 Qualifying Times & 12 First-Place Finishes in Season-Opening Meet

The Emory University swimming and diving team provided a strong showing in its first intercollegiate meet of the year, as the men and women combined for 15 NCAA qualifying times and 12 first-place finishes, despite losing to NCAA Division I UNC Wilmington.

The Emory men suffered a 176.5 – 123.5 loss to UNC Wilmington, while the women lost 173-127.  However, a number of the Eagles' swimmers turned in successful days, despite the team outcome.

On the men's side, freshman Ross Spock swam a 'B' cut time of 51.72 seconds in the 100-yard backstroke, finishing first in the event.  Another newcomer, junior Patrick Augustyn, recorded a 'B' cut time of 1:53.75 in the 200-yard butterfly with a second-place finish.  Emory sophomore Peter O'Brien notched the final qualifying time of the day by an Emory men's swimmer, finishing first with a time of 2:06.71 in the 200-yard breaststroke.  Other first place finishes for the Eagles' included senior Mark Bernstein in the 200-yard freestyle, O'Brien in the 100-yard breaststroke and 200-yard individual medley, and junior Jared Dubnow in the 200-yard backstroke.

For the women, sophomore Leslie Hackler finished first in the the 100- and 200-yard butterflies, swimming provisional qualifying times of 57.20 seconds in the former and 2:06.89 in the latter.  Freshman Sadie Nennig also notched two 'B' cut times, swimming marks of 57.85 seconds in the 100-yard backstroke and 2:05.77 in the 200-yard backstroke, finishing third in both events.  Senior April Whitley had 'B' cut times in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:05.35) and 200-yard breaststroke (2:23.16), while freshman Jennifer Pak (1:54:48 in the 200-yard freestyle), and junior Clare Pavlak (23.99 seconds in the 50-yard freestyle recorded provisional times as well.  The Eagles also had 'B' cut performances from its 200-medley relay and 400-freestyle relay teams.

Senior Liz Horvat added on a pair of first-place finishes for Emory, winning both the 500-yard freestyle and 1,000-yard freestyle.

The Eagles also had a successful day in the diving events.  Junior Daniel Kolb and Patrick Brady each took second and third, respectively, in both the one- and three-meter dives.  In the one-meter dive, both recorded NCAA qualifying scores, with Kolb scoring 295.20 points and Brady 285.08 points.  For the women, freshman Sarah Greene won both the one- and three-meter dives, with scores of 235.15 and 239.25, respectively.

Both Emory teams dropped to 0-1 on the season with the loss, while the UNC Wilmington men improved to 3-2, and the women raised their record to 6-0.

Emory will return to the pool on Wednesday, facing a pair of local NCAA Division I powerhouse programs in the University of Georgia and Georgia Tech, at Georgia Tech at 5:00 PM.