Though the Irish separated their swimmers and divers for the weekend, Notre Dame swimmers smashed several records and took fifth at the Ohio State Invitational while the divers swept the one-meter dive at the Hawkeye Invitational.
The weekend started out with a bang as sophomore Emma Reaney took down her own school record in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 1.55.05. This time qualifies Reaney for the NCAA championships in March and is the fastest time in the country so far this season.
Shortly after, Reaney joined senior captain Kim Holden, junior Kelly Ryan and freshman Catherine Galletti broke the school record in the 400-yard medley relay by over half a second.
Ryan said the best part of the weekend was watching the team come together and support one another as Notre Dame matched up against the competition.
"There were very fast teams there," Ryan said. "It was great to race against the best in the country. Racing with these girls will help us to up our game in training and racing as the end of the season approaches."
On day two of the Ohio State Invitational, records continued to fall. Reaney claimed victory and the Notre Dame record in the 400-yard individual medley and the 100-yard breaststroke to round out her weekend. In addition to her medley relay victory, Holden broke the record in the 100-yard butterfly, which qualifies her for the B-cut in the NCAA championships.
On the final day of competition, Reaney won the 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 2.07.60, breaking the meet record.
Ryan said having such a successful end of the season bodes well for the spring season.
"The fall season has been very good for us," Ryan said. "We have been redefining what is considered good as a team and continually getting better. We are very focused and I know that we will continue the momentum."
At the Hawkeye Invitational, senior Jenny Chiang and sophomore Allison Casareto finished first and second in the one-meter dive, with freshman Emma Gaboury coming in close behind in fourth place.
Chiang claimed victory in the 3-meter dive as well with a final score of 341.70, 13 points above her nearest competitor. Gaboury finished seventh the 3-meter.
Other notable performances over the weekend included junior Christen McDonough's fourth place-finish in the 100-yard breaststroke. Her time qualified her for the NCAA B-cut, as did junior Lauren Stauder's seventh-place finish in the same event. Holden finished third in the 100-yard backstroke, with Ryan finishing just over a second behind in seventh place.
These events concluded the fall season for the Irish, who will be back in action Jan. 11 when they take on Michigan and Northwestern at Notre Dame's Rolfs Aquatic Center.
Contact Katie Heit at
kheit@nd.edu
