|
Swimming and Diving Splits Weekend at Vermont
Nov. 17, 2008 Orono, Maine - The University of Maine swimming and diving team traveled to Vermont last weekend for a duel meet that pitted the men against Keene State and the women against the Catamounts. The Black Bear men staged a dramatic comeback to score a 162-136 win, while the Maine women came up short in a 174-117 loss. The Black Bears were led by Jeremy Bender (St. Paul, Minn.) who won three individual events and Kerstin Fenton (Dixon, Calif.) who swam to a individual and relay win. The Maine men's team found themselves down a startling 31 points after the first nine events despite two early wins by Bender and Andrew Mackeil (Biddeford, Maine) in the 1000 freestyle and 200 butterfly, respectively. Faced with a dire situation, captain John Quinn (Bangor, Maine) rallied the team together and they pledged to turn the meet around. Quinn stepped up big in the very next event, winning the 100 freestyle with a time of 49.78, beating Keene State by .01 seconds. With the Owls knocked back a step, the Black Bears proceeded to win every-single race to secure the 162-136 win. Jamie Young (Richboro, Pa.) took first in the 200 backstroke in 2:02.06. Brian Landry (Yorktown, Va.) followed that with a 2:15.37 time in the 200 breaststroke that continued the streak. Bender beat-out Quinn in the 500 freestyle with a 4:56.31 time. In the 100 butterfly Mackeil scored another win with a time of 53.72 before Bender picked up his third win in the 200 I.M. in 2:05.55. The Black Bears finished the meet as a team as Quinn, Young, Kevin Staples (Mt. Desert, Maine) and Corey Stogner (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) sealed the meet with a winning time of 1:31.07 in the 200 freestyle relay.
The Maine women's team fought hard as well, but fell short 174-117 despite several key wins. Courtney Healey (Reading, Mass.) got first in the 200 backstroke with a time of 2:12.82, while Adi Levy (Givatayim, Israel) won the 100 butterfly in 1:02.44 and Fenton took first in the 200 I.M. with a time of 2:15.01. Samantha Graham (Vestal, N.Y.) picked up another win in the three-meter dive as she continues her stellar season, she received a score of 200.84. The Black Bears finished on a high-note, taking the 200 freestyle relay with a team of Fenton, Colleen Miller (Missoula, Mont.), Samantha Bond (Temple, N.H.) and Lisa Limanek (Shelburne, Vt.) that finished in 1:43.55. The Maine swimming and diving teams will travel to Boston, Mass. next weekend to take part in three-day Boston University Invitational. --UM-- |
