University at Buffalo
WNY Invite
Swim Teams Roll at Season Opening WNY Invite
10/13/2012 12:00:00 AM | Swimming and Diving
BUFFALO, NY – The University at Buffalo men's and women's swimming and diving teams opening the 2012-13 season on Saturday with the WNY Invite against Big Four rivals Canisius, Niagara and St. Bonaventure. The Bulls won 28 of the 34 events in the non-scoring meet.
In the women's meet, senior Brittney Kuras and sophomore Spencer Rodriguez won three events apiece to lead the Bulls. Kuras, coming off her stellar 2011-12 season which culminated in a spot at the NCAA National Championships, won the 500-yard freestyle in 4:59.48. She later followed with a victory in the 200-yard freestyle in 1:52.66 and also took the 200-yard breaststroke in 2:25.09.
Rodriguez claimed both individual medley races, winning the 200-yard IM in 2:08.00 and the 400-yard IM in 4:33.78. She also won the 200-yard breaststroke in 1:06.90.
Mallory Morrell won both freestyle sprint races in the women's competition as she took the 50-yard freestyle in 23.43 and the 100-yard race in 52.76. Ava Giachino swept the women's diving events with a 283.30 point total on the one-meter board and a total of 258.70 points in the three-meter event.
Other individual women's winners included Jessica Powers in the 1,000-yard freestyle in 10:17.65 and Marissa Murphy in the 100-yard butterfly in 58.11.
The UB women also won both relay races. Murphy, Kelsey Barbour, Taylor Steffl and Morrell combined to take the 200-yard medley relay in 1:47.70. Rachael Ragen, Kuras, Murphy and Alex Swies won the 200-yard freestyle relay in 1:38.04.
Junior Eric Culver was a three-event winner in the men's competition. Culver swept the distance freestyle races with a 4:44.54 clocking the 500-yard freestyle and claimed the 1,000-yard freestyle in 9:48.35. He also won the 200-yard butterfly in 1:54.48.
Mike Dugan and Matt Schwippert, both first-team All-MAC honorees last season, were double winners on Saturday. Dugan took the sprint freestyle events, the 50-yard freestyle in 20.76 and the 100-yard freestyle in 46.09. Schwippert swept the backstrokes with a 52.21 in the 100-yard race and a 1:52.12 in the 200-yard event.
Scoring single wins for the UB men were Matt Hogan in the 200-yard IM (1:57.16), Josh Meints in the 100-yard breaststroke (59.36), John Nord in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:11.41), Cory Zorsch in the 100-yard butterfly (50.53) and Antonio Lanzi in the 400-yard IM (4:11.69).
UB's men also took both relays as Schwippert, Meints, Zorsch and Dugan won the 200-yard medley relay in 1:33.25 and Hogan, Schwippert, Christian Muller and Austin Kowalsky won the 200-yard freestyle relay in 1:26.73.
Head coach Andy Bashor was please with his team's results on Saturday but sees room for improvement. "It's a good starting off point. We put in seven really great weeks of training but we still have a long way to go and they know that," stated Bashor.
The Bulls open the dual meet season in two weeks as they host Cornell at Alumni Arena Natatorium on October 27 at 1:00 pm.
