Jan. 6, 2012
Contact: Tim Ertle
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Fort Lauderdale, Fla. - The Cleveland State women's swimming and diving team kicked off 2012 on a strong note, besting the other 16 teams in the field to win the Bob Mowerson Sprint Meet held on Friday (Jan. 6). The meet, sponsored by the College Swimming Coaches Association of America, was held at the International Swimming Hall of Fame's outdoor pool on a long course.
The Vikings won the meet with a score of 231, edging out Bloomsburg who finished with 206. Clarion placed third with 137 points while Binghamton (129), Kutztown (120) and St. Peter's (113) rounded out the top-six.
"We had a really good training trip," head coach Wally Morton said. "I was really pleased with the effort that we put into this and the meet was really just for fun. We really enjoyed the meet and the weather was terrific. It was nice to compete against other schools at the Hall of Fame facility."
Nikki Kolis won the 400 meter free with a time of 4:46.98 while teammates Amanda Pallija, Ashley Rossi and Erin Jajtner were the next three to touch.
Carys Behn won the 100 meter free with a 1:00.95, just ahead of Alexandra Johansson (1:03.56) and Jamie Puls (1:04.17).
The Vikings had another one-two-three sweep in the 200 meter IM as Joanna Olsson won the event with a 2:31.54. Gretchen Hestley was just off the pace with a 2:35.17 and Megan Splain was third with a 2:41.55.
Emily Splain (31.98), Hannah Morris (33.52) and Liz Tamas (33.65) all cracked the top-eight in the 50 meter fly.
Newcomer Hayley Smith, swimming in her first meet with the Vikings, was second in the 50 meter back with a 33.99 and Erin Bender was fifth when she touched in 35.33.
Allison Pallija and Emily Simard finished third and fifth, respectively, in the 50 meter breast. Pallija was clocked at 38.07, just a split second ahead of Simard's 38.46.
Christine Kopacko won the final event, the 50 meter free, in 28.22.
"Our kids are really tired and have worked so hard, so I thought the times we swam were really good considering the circumstances," Morton said.
The Vikings will be in action next Saturday (Jan. 14) at 2:00 p.m. when they take on Xavier and Oakland at the OU Aquatic Center in Rochester, Mich.
