Marshall University Athletics
Marshall Wins First Home Meet, Drops Radford 121-111
1/25/2003 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming and Diving
Marshall Wins First Home Meet, Drops Radford 121-111
1/25/2003
- Full Results
HUNTINGTON, W. Va. ? Less than 24 hours after suffering a defeat to the hands of Miami University, the Marshall women?s swimming and diving team bounced back at home to knock off the visiting Radford Highlanders at Frederick A. Fitch Natatorium on Saturday by a 121-111 final score. The victory marks the first home win since Marshall relaunched the women?s program this season.
Marshall won 11 of the 13 events on Saturday, led by freshman Michele Knicely (Bridgeport, W. Va.) who won both the 100-yard freestyle (56.94) and the 200-yard freestyle (2:00.86).
Sophomore Erika Nilsson (Haninge, Sweden) continued her superior swimming in the 500-yard freestyle, winning the event in 5:13.18. Liisa Raty (Espoo, Finland), a freshman, stepped into the 100-yard butterfly race to give the Mid-American Conference?s leading fly swimmer, Milla Kuurto (Lohja, Finland), a day off from the event. Raty produced a similar result, winning the race with a time of 1:01.33. Kuurto, in the meantime, won the 50-yard freestyle by nearly two seconds over Radford?s Erin Patterson with a time of 24.51.
Freshman diver Casey Mulholland (Stone Mountain, Ga.) continues to impress fans with her stellar efforts on the boards. Mulholland swept the diving events, winning the 1-meter competition with a score of 253.80. Her score of 282.23 in the 3-meter event was once again good enough to qualify her for the NCAA Diving Zone Championships.
?Casey?s progress has been phenomenal,? said diving coach Clifton Waterbury. ?She has been meeting and exceeding the goals we set in the preseason and is really focused on her diving.?
As part of Marshall?s ?Bring Back the Herd? weekend, M-Club President George Lambros welcomed back several Thundering Herd swimmers of the past, who were honored before Saturday?s meet. Marshall fielded a men?s swimming and diving team for several years before the program was disbanded in 1988. The team won five consecutive Southern Conference championships from 1977-1981.
Other winners for Marshall include Elyse Beard (Conway, Ark.), a winner in the 1,000-yard freestyle (10:55.31), Laura Alsager (Mt. Pleasant, Mich.), the 100-yard breaststroke winner (1:12.14) and Emily Moe (Rockford, Mich.) who edged out the Highlanders? Shelia Brosnan to win the 200-yard individual medley (2:19.89).
Marshall (5-5, 0-4 MAC) will return to the water versus Toledo and Buffalo on Feb. 1, in attempt to secure its first MAC victory in school history. The Rockets will host the tri-meet at the Student Recreation Center Pool next weekend on the University of Toledo campus. Radford (2-7) takes on Washington and Lee tomorrow at home.
