Strong Relay Performances Propel Blue Devils

Saturday, January 14

Columbia, S.C.

2:00 PM

Duke University

South Carolina

Strong Relay Performances Propel Blue Devils

1/14/2012 8:15:00 PM | Swimming & Diving

By: Duke Sports Information

COLUMBIA, S.C. - The Duke men's and women's swimming and diving teams opened the 2012 portion of their schedule Saturday against South Carolina and the Queens University of Charlotte. The Blue Devils went 2-2 on the day, with both squads defeating Queens and falling to South Carolina at the meet, which was hosted by the Gamecocks at their Carolina Natatorium.

Fresh off of an informal meet with NC State last week, Duke's divers started off Saturday's competition with strong performances on the low boards. Senior Jessica Lyden took second on the 1-meter (287.40) and 3-meter boards (282.45), surpassing NCAA Zone Diving qualifying standards in both events. On the men's side, junior Jordan Long finished second on the 1-meter board (285.83), while freshman Clay Pinckney scored a personal-best 282.90 points to come in third. Senior Cody Kolodziejzyk placed second in the 3-meter competition, and his score of 359.10 qualified him to the NCAA Zone Diving Championships.

"We just came off of a big training week after the holiday break," said diving coach Drew Johansen. "We went up against strong teams in South Carolina and we did well against them, which should prepare us well for the ACC Championships."

The Blue Devils opened the swimming events with a pair of first-place finishes in the 200 medley relays. Freshman Megan McCarroll, sophomore Christine Wixted, senior Steffi Niessl and sophomore Lauren Weaver teamed up to grab first in 1:44.41. Sophomore Steven Gasparini, graduate student Piotr Safronczyk, senior Ben Tuben and junior Ben Hwang won the men's race with a mark of 1:30.36.

Senior Rose O'Connor followed with a second-place showing in the women in the 1,000 free, posting a time of 10:12.47. Fellow senior Meghan Dwyer also took second in the 200 free, swimming 1:51.83, while junior Cara Vogel (57.21) and McCarroll (57.46) finished second and third, respectively, in the 100 back. Vogel also turned in a first-place performance in the 200 back, winning in a time of 2:01.47. In another bright spot for Duke, rookie Ali Horn claimed first in the women's 200 fly with her mark of 2:04.39.

Two-time ACC Performer of the Week Wixted won the women's 100 breast for the fourth time this season, touching in 1:03.49. Wixted also turned in a strong performance in the 200 breast, finishing second in 2:16.41. Meanwhile, Safronczyk and sophomore Hunter Knight went one-two in the men's 100 breast, recording times of 56.46 and 56.55, respectively. Knight also won the 200 breast with a mark of 2:05.25.

The Blue Devils also recorded a sweep in the 50 free events, with Weaver winning on the women's side in 23.54, and Hwang edging the field in the men's race at 20.42. Hwang was also the winner of the men's 100 free with his time of 45.17.

Dwyer swam 5:00.15 to win the women's 500 free, while Niessl finished second in the 100 fly at 57.43. Tuben also took second in the men's 100 fly race, posting a time of 49.72. Duke closed out the meet on a high note as Tuben, junior Adam Flur, Safronczyk and Hwang swam 3:03.98 to win the men's 400 free relay.

"We definitely had some fine swims today," said head coach Dan Colella. "We are taking great pride in the way our relays are swimming right now ... I think with each coming week as we get closer and closer to ACCs, we'll be getting a little bit finer tuned."

The Duke men move to 4-4 on the season following Saturday's action, while the women move to 3-5 overall. Both teams resume ACC competition on Friday, Jan. 20 when they host Virginia in Taishoff Aquatic Pavilion.

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