Genesee Swimming & Diving Competes at NJCAA National Championships
The Genesee Cougars Swimming and Diving team traveled to Fort Pierce, Florida to compete in the NJCAA National Swimming and Diving Championships hosted by Indian River State College. The women's team finished in 6th place overall and the men's team finished 10th.
The Wednesday morning preliminary competition started with Teddy Herrmann swimming in the 50 breaststroke where he placed 17th (30.25). Ashley Hearn finished 14th (14:48.04) in the 1000 freestyle. The 50 freestyle saw Michaela Pantano and Taylor Fletcher place 18th (29.61) and 19th (30.60) respectively. During the Wednesday night finals, the 800 freestyle relay team of Ashton Laird, Nina Bodnarskyj, Kiaya Condidorio, and Hearn finished in 6th place (10:46.33) with their best time of the season.
The Thursday morning preliminary competition saw Laird finish 13th (34.34) in the 50 backstroke. In the 400 Individual Medley, Pantano finished in 8th place with a time of 6:18.27. Vincent Strollo placed 19th (1:08.06) in the 100 butterfly. In the 200 freestyle, Chloe Barrett placed 15th (2:39.13), Paige Derisley 16th (2:43.47), and Bodnarskyj 17th (2:47.35). In the Thursday night finals, Laird placed 13th (34.18) in the 50 backstroke. In the 200 freestyle, Barrett finished 14th (2:40.56), Derisley 15th (2:42.62), and Bodnarskyj 16th (2:43.02). The 400 Medley Relay team saw Laird, Hearn, Pantano, and Fletcher finish 5th (5:10.72) with their best time of the season.
The Friday morning preliminary events began with Laird placing 11th (1:20.86) in the 100 Individual Medley. Hearn and Bodnarskyj finished 15th (7:04.81) and 16th (7:24.10) in the 500 freestyle. Abby Statskey had an impressive swim in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:30.84 earning her 11th place. Herrmann had a great performance in the 100 breaststroke finishing in 17th with a time of 1:06.87. In the 200 butterfly, Pantano finished with a time of 3:06.14 in 8th place. Strollo finished with a time of 2:37.06 and 15th place in the 200 butterfly. For the Friday night finals, Laird swam a 1:19.67 in the 100 Individual Medley for 11th place. In the 500 freestyle, Hearn placed 15th with a time of 6:55.35 and Bodnarskyj placed 16th with a time of 7:19.55. Statskey finished in 11th place (1:30.14) in the 100 breaststroke. Pantano placed 8th (3:06.58) in the 200 butterfly. Strollo finished 15th with a time of 2:38.98 in the 200 butterfly. To close out the night Laird, Hearn, Pantano, and Fletcher swam in the 200 Medley Relay earning 6th place with a time of 2:14.86.
The Saturday morning preliminary competition started with Pantano finishing 10th in the 50 butterfly with a time of 31.21. Strollo placed 23rd in the 50 butterfly with a time of 30.16. Bodnarskyj (25:23.41) and Laird (25:40.37) finished in 12th and 13th place, respectively, in the 1650 freestyle. In the 100 freestyle, Barrett placed 18th (1:09.88) and Fletcher placed 19th (1:10.55). Herrmann placed 21st with a time of 54.28 in the 100 freestyle. In the 200 breaststroke, Hearn placed 10th (3:03.77) and Statskey 12th (3:09.73). Herrmann finished in 15th (2:29.78) in the 200 breaststroke. For the 1 Meter diving preliminary, Kellie Brewer placed
4th with a score of 196.15. The Saturday night finals began with Pantano placing 11th (31.85) in the 50 butterfly. Hearn swam a 2:59.35 earning her 9th place in the 200 breaststroke. Herrmann finished 16th in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:31.28. In the 1 Meter diving finals, Brewer finished 4th improving her final score to 205.65. The last event for the night was the 400 Freestyle Relay. The team of Laird, Fletcher, Hearn, and Pantano finished with a best time of 4:32.44 earning them 6th place.