Marshall University Athletics
Marshall University
James Madison
Swimming & Diving Finishes Big at Radford
10/1/2011 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming and Diving
Oct. 1, 2011
RADFORD, VA. - The Marshall Swimming & Diving team completed its first meet of the season with duals wins against Campbell and Radford, and a loss to James Madison. The Thundering Herd had three swimmers grab the top spot in their respective events and two swimmers marked times that will go into the Marshall Swimming & Diving record books.
After the conclusion of the event, Marshall improved their record to 2-1 with wins over Radford and Campbell. Marshall finished with a 210 to 84 score against Radford and beat Campbell 186-102. The Herd was unable to top James Madison as the Dukes knocked off the Herd, 211-89.
"I saw some very positive things from the ladies in the water today, and I was happy to see this team rally around what were many first time collegiate performances," noted Coach Russell Hunt after the meet.
Kacey Preun had one of the most productive performances for the Herd during the event. Preun placed first in the 200 Breaststroke, marking the second all-time finish in top-10 performers with a 2:22.43 time. The only time that bests hers in the Marshall's record books is Michaela Sceli's time of 2:16.28, set in 2008. Preun also had a second place finish on the day in the 1000 yard Freestyle with a 10:30.61 finish.
Madison Lawhorn also cracked the Marshall Swimming & Diving record books today after a 1:06.22 first place finish in the 100 Breaststroke. With the finish, Lawhorn goes in to all-time records as the fourth place time in the 100 Breaststroke. The Herd took the top two spots in the event, as Preun finished with the second best time at 1:07.61.
Sophomore, Saray Kay, won two events during the meet, finishing first in both the 100 Fly and the 200 Fly. Kay finished with the top time in the 100 Fly with a 58.47 finish and flew past the competition in the 200 Fly with a 2:05.46, beating the opposition with over a second of cushion in the 200 Fly event.
"It was a long session this afternoon, but it was great preparation for what we can expect in a championship format," commented Coach Hunt on the swimming performances. "My hope is that we can narrow our focus from here, continue to come together, and sustain that focus as we prep for future competition."
Diving also had a productive day in the water. Lauren Rone finished just 10 points shy of the NCAA Zone qualifying score of 265. She concluded the day with a 255 score in the 1 Meter event. "Her high score on the 1M last year was around 255, so she hasn't missed a step," commented head coach of diving, Jim Zagaria.
Casey Kyriacopoulos also performed well for the Herd in the first meet of her collegiate career. "Casey did an outstanding job at her first college meet. She was able to compete a handful of new dives today and I'm very pleased with her progress."
The Herd will return to the water for the West Virginia State games on October 14. The meet will start at 2:00 p.m. ET.
Players Mentioned
