Jan. 28, 2012
NOTRE DAME, Ind. – The Notre Dame women’s swimming and diving team won a pair of events and earned seven runner-up finishes on the final day of competition at the Shamrock Invitational held at Rolfs Aquatic Center. The Irish knocked off Iowa, 201-169, and fell to Ohio State, 214-147, to go 1-1 on the weekend.
Picking up wins for the Irish on day two were a pair of freshmen. A regular in the winner’s circle, Emma Reaney won the 200 breaststroke by over three seconds, swimming a NCAA B-cut time of 2:16.16. Fellow freshman Bridget Casey claimed the 200 fly title in 2:01.71, her fourth such victory of the season.
Sophomore Kelly Ryan finished second in the 100 and 200 free events, while Kim Holden (100 back), Jenny Chiang (1-meter dive) and Reaney (400 IM, 100 breast) also earned runner-up finishes. The 400 free relay team ended the meet with a silver medal performance.
The evening session opened with senior night for two Irish student-athletes and a student manager, as Emily Barton, Amy Prestinario and senior manager Nick Schappler all were recognized for their service to the Irish women’s swimming and diving program.
Notre Dame (5-6) closes out the regular season next Saturday when it heads to Muncie, Ind., to battle the Cardinals of Ball State. The dual meet gets underway at 1 p.m.
EVENT-BY-EVENT RESULTS
Day Two – Morning Session
200 Medley Relay: The Buckeyes claimed the top two spots in the 200 medley relay, with the Irish securing third place. The team of Kim Holden, Emma Reaney, Sarah Dotzel and Kelly Ryan finished in 1:44.12. The B team of Courtney Whyte, Lauren Stauder, Lauren Scott and Amy Prestinario claimed sixth in 1:47.09.
400 IM: Reaney suffered the first loss of her Notre Dame IM career on Saturday, as Iowa’s Becky Stoughton used an impressive freestyle stroke to pass her on the final lap. Reaney entered the race 8-0 in IM finals, and made up over a body length to take the lead on the breaststroke. However, Stoughton powered through the water over the final lap to claim the victory in a NCAA B-cut time of 4:17.44. Reaney took second in a B-cut time of 4:19.59, as the pair finished well ahead of the third place finisher. Fellow freshman Bridget Casey placed fifth in 4:29.43.
100 Fly: L. Scott and Prestinario took fifth and sixth place in the 100 fly, finishing in 57.30 and 57.58, respectively. The Buckeyes took the top three spots in the race.
200 Free: The Irish had a pair of top-five finishers, led by Ryan, who finished second in 1:52.30. Freshman Suzanne Bessire took fourth in 1:52.59.
100 Breast: Reaney earned her second runner-up finish on the day in the 100 breaststroke, narrowly missing out on first place by just .14 seconds. Ohio State’s Catherine Eitel touched the pad in first (1:03.72), with Reaney hot on her heels in 1:03.96. Sophomore Lauren Stauder gave the Irish two top-three finishers in the event, taking third in 1:04.23. Sophomore Christen McDonough finished sixth in 1:05.79.
100 Back: Holden continued her impressive return to the pool, finishing second in 100 backstroke with a time of 56.36. Ryan gave the Irish two top-four finishers as she placed fourth in 56.77.
800 Free Relay: The Buckeyes claimed the top spot in the 800 free relay, with Iowa and the OSU B-team following behind. The top Irish team took fourth as the team of Prestinario, Bessire, Jaime Malandra and Reaney touched the pad in 7:39.02.
1-Meter Dive: A day after winning the 3-meter dive, junior Jenny Chiang took second in the 1-meter dive with a score of 281.70. Freshman Allison Casareto finished fourth with 268.50 points.
Day Two – Evening Session
1,650 Free: Iowa’s Becky Stoughton continued her impressive weekend as she cruised past the field in the 1,650 free, winning by more than 30 seconds in a NCAA B-cut time of 16:27.77. Notre Dame’s Jaime Malandra and Erin Foley finished fifth and sixth, respectively, with times of 17:27.48 and 17:40.76.
200 Back: Stoughton picked up her second victory in 20 minutes, winning the 200 back in a NCAA B-cut time of 1:58.38. Ryan finished third in 2:02.75, while Holden took fourth in 2:03.04.
100 Free: Ryan took less than five minutes off before jumping back in the water for the 100 free. She finished second in 50.76. Prestinario touched the pad in fourth (51.35), while Bessire took sixth in 52.38.
200 Breast: Reaney got back to her winning ways in the 200 breast, as the freshman topped the second place finisher by over three seconds in a NCAA B-cut time of 2:16.16. Lauren Stauder placed fourth in 2:20.21.
200 Fly: Freshman Bridget Casey got back to her winning form in the 200 fly, taking the event in 2:01.71. The U.S. National Junior Team member in the event edged out Ohio State’s Darcy Fishback by .20 seconds. Fellow freshman Melissa Scott took sixth in 2:06.65.
400 Free Relay: The 400 free relay team of Ryan, Prestinario, Bessire and Reaney claimed second in a NCAA B-cut time of 3:24.43.
NCAA B-Cuts:
Becky Stoughton (Iowa): 400 IM, 1,650 Free, 200 Back
Emma Reaney (ND): 400 IM, 200 Breast
Michelle Williams (OSU): 100 Free
Ohio State – 400 Free Relay
Notre Dame – 400 Free Relay
–ND–