COLUMBUS, Ohio — In a competitive meet featuring several United States Olympians, the Notre Dame women’s swimming and diving program held its own. This weekend, the Irish finished fifth overall at the Ohio State Fall Invitational with 917 points, and the group had several notable performances that will propel them forward into the new calendar year.
Freshman Carli Cronk was Notre Dame’s top swimmer of the meet. She placed second in the 200 fly with a time of 1:57.03, which ranks seventh in school history. The San Antonio native added a win in the B final of the 400 IM with a time of 4:12.87, which ranks fifth in school history. Both marks are NCAA B cuts.
Lainey Mullins, a sophomore transfer from UVA, made the A final in the 200 fly, finishing eighth overall with a time of 1:58.75, also a B cut for NCAAs. Mullins won the C final of the 500 free with a time of 4:49.35.
Seniors Jess Geriane and Madelyn Christman earned one victory each in the B final of their respective best events. Geriane notched a B cut in the 100 back B final (52.87), while Christman took the B final of the 200 back with a time of 1:55.99. She was an NCAA qualifier in the 200 back last year. Geriane also went 49.79 in the 100 free, a personal best and just her second time breaking 50.0.
The 1650 was a strong event for Notre Dame, as the Irish placed three swimmers in the top 15, all of them seniors. Maggie Graves placed eighth (16:25.49), Sophia Karras finished 14th (16:40.74), and Mary Cate Pruitt took 15th (16:44.45). Graves and Karras earned B cuts in the event.
Notre Dame’s best relay finish of the meet came in the 400 free relay, as Imogen Meers, Geriane, Christman and Katie Drumm finished fifth with a time of 3:16.53. Meers led off the relay with a 100 free split of 49.03, which will count toward the individual event and ranks third in program history. It is also an NCAA B cut to go along with her B cut in the 100 back from the meet (53.48).
In the diving well, junior Grace Courtney took fifth in the 3-meter (320.95) and 11th in the 1-meter (273.15). Like Christman, Courtney also qualified for the NCAA Championships last year. Ben Nguyen finished 10th in the 3-meter (302.40).
The Irish will have a break from competition until after the holiday season; Notre Dame’s next meet is Jan. 10 at Purdue and against Kentucky.