Nine School Records Fall as Blue Swimming & Diving Finishes Fifth at NEWMACs

SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. – After three days of action, the Wellesley Blue finished in fifth place at the 2011 NEWMAC Women's Swimming & Diving Championships.  Wellesley's 2011 rank and point total (340) marked the best effort for the Blue since the 2008 Championship.

Overall, the 2011 squad shattered the Wellesley record book, surpassing nine program marks, while also hitting two NCAA "B" cuts at the Championship.  The final session was highlighted by a school record in the 400-free and a huge showing, including a school record, in the 200-fly.

Wellesley first-year Keelin Nave ended the final day of her first conference Championship by leading a trio of Blue swimmers to 31 team points in the 200-fly. Nave took third place in dramatic fashion, posting a time of 2:09.77 and breaking another 21-year old school record.  Her time bested Deb Twichell who swam a 2:11.57 in 1990.  Also for the Blue, sophomore Virginia Hung qualified for the "A" final with a 2:14.92 in the prelims, before finishing in eighth place overall.  Rounding out a strong event for Wellesley, senior Alex Cahill took 13th place in a time of 2:17.42, while junior Stephanie Welch placed 20th overall in 2:23.77.

In the 400-free relay, the Wellesley team of Nave, Hung, senior Dana Dutton and first-year Mariam Amirkhanashvili touched the wall in fourth place with a program record of 3:35.60.  The 2011 squad bested the previous school record of 3:36.55 set by RC Saint-Amour, Savanna Johnson, Nina Johnson and Carolyn O'Hara in 2006.

At the diving end of the pool, Wellesley was represented by two divers in the top-12 on the three-meter board.  In her first NEWMAC Championship as a diver instead of a swimmer, sophomore Chelsea-Ann Patry took ninth place overall with a score of 337.25, just one spot shy of making the finals.  Also for the Blue, sophomore Kathryn Goffin had a strong meet, posting a 334.70 to finish in 12th place.

Another highlight for the Blue was placing two swimmers in the top-12 in the 200-back.  First-years  Anne Hamilton and Carolyn Jackson both qualified for the "B" final, with Hamilton recording a 2:32.66 to finish in 11th, and Jackson touching in 2:32.92 to finish ninth overall.

Rounding out the day's action, first-year Gabriela Kovacikova recorded an 11th place finish in the 200-back, while classmate Amirkhanashvili took 11th in the 100-free in 54.33. Dutton also finished 17th in the 1650-free, posting a time of 18:43.75.

In the team standings, Wellesley finished just 19.5 points behind fourth place Wheaton (359.5).  At the top of the rankings, MIT took the team title with 917.5 points, ousting 10-time defending champion Springfield, who finished second with 894.5 points. Coast Guard took fourth with 446 points, followed by Wheaton and Wellesley.  Rounding out the team scores were Clark (299.5), WPI (202), Smith (188), Babson (115) and Mount Holyoke (113).

2011 NEWMAC Women's Swimming and Diving Championship

1. MIT – 917.5
2. Springfield College – 894.5
3. Coast Guard Academy – 446
4. Wheaton College – 359.5
5. Wellesley College – 340
6. Clark University – 299.5
7. WPI – 202
8. Smith College – 188
9. Babson College – 115
10. Mount Holyoke College – 113

Wellesley School Records Broken

* - NCAA "B" Cut

2011 NEWMAC Women's Swimming and Diving All-Conference Teams
(Event Winners Earn First Team All-Conference)

! - NEWMAC Championship record
^ - NEWMAC Open record
@ - NCAA "A" standard
& - NCAA "B" standard