Despite outstanding individual performances by a number of swimmers, the Belles fell to Carthage College in a non-conference dual meet Friday. The event, hosted at Purdue University, ended in a 139.5 to 65.5 final score in favor of the Lady Reds.
Saint Mary's entered Friday's meet winless after dropping the season opener to Kalamazoo College last Friday. Hoping to rebound this week, the Belles were unable to get past a strong front of Lady Red swimmers in both the individual and relay competitions.
Carthage's Amanda Croix, who was recently named NCAA Division III National Swimmer of the Week, paced all swimmers with an impressive time of 1:57.57 in the 200-yard freestyle, while also giving Carthage the edge in the 500-yard freestyle with a finishing time of 5:17.44.
In what has become a continuing trend, Saint Mary's was led by the outstanding performances of freshmen Katie Griffin and Ellie Watson and sophomore Audrey Dalrymple.
"They are young, so they're going to be around for a while," Belles coach Alicia Dombkowski said. "All three of them are very good swimmers. Audrey qualified for nationals last year, the first swimmer from Saint Mary's to qualify. Griffin is very close to two school records, and Ellie is very good as well, so they bring a lot of upfront talent to the team."
Watson took first in the 1,000-yard freestyle as she cruised to victory with more than 16 seconds to spare, finishing with a time of 11:26.97. She also swam the butterfly leg of the 400-yard relay, which finished second in 4:12.66.
Competing in the 100-yard breaststroke, Dalrymple was the top finisher with a time of 1:11.74. She also swam the breaststroke portion of the 400-yard medley relay.
Griffin finished second in both the 200-yard freestyle and the 100-yard butterfly with times of 2:02.19 and 1:01.14, respectively, while also swimming the backstroke leg of the 400-yard medley relay.
With the goal of a fourth place finish in the MIAA in mind, the Belles have a tough task ahead of them as they season wears on. Hoping to change their fortunes, they will travel to Grand Rapids, Mich., for the Calvin Invitational next month.
