Posted: Jan 19, 2020

Wellesley Swimming & Diving Wins MHC Sisters Invitational

Butterfly swimmer moving right to left — Sophomore Emery Dutton earned one of Wellesley's 12 victories in the 400 IM (Frank Poulin).

SOUTH HADLEY, Mass. -- Wellesley College swimming & diving won 12 of 14 events on day two of the Sisters Invitational to finish in first place at the meet on Sunday at the Kendall Sports Complex Natatorium. Wellesley closed out the meet with 1241.5 points, finishing ahead of second place Smith (770.5) and host Mount Holyoke College (767) in third place. Merrimack College was fourth (589) and Western New England University finished fifth (204).

After winning four events during Saturday's opening session, the Blue opened Sunday with a victory in the 200 Medley Relay behind a time of 1:54.06 from sophomores Jessica Wegner (Taipei, Taiwan) and Allie Chiou (Chandler, Ariz.), senior Maggie Haley (Shady Side, Md.) and first year Shawyuan Hsu (Taipei, Taiwan). Sophomore Emery Dutton (Wayland, Mass.) followed the opening win in the 200 Medley Relay with a victory in the 400 IM in 4:49.77 before the Blue showed off their team depth in the next five events.

Wegner, Haley, and Mason took three of the top-four spots in the 100 Fly, with Wegner winning the event in 1:00.21, while Haley took second in 1:00.56 and Julie Mason (Lakeville, Mass.) was fourth in 1:03.33. Junior Hannah May (Cincinnati, Ohio) helped the Blue to a sweep of the top-five spots in the 200 Freestyle, winning in 1:57.65, while teammates Paulina Gonzalez (Caracas, Venezuela) followed in second (2:01.92), senior Danielle Peterson (Livingston, N.J.) was third (2:03.34), Haley was fourth (2:03.78) and Dutton was fifth (2:05.07). Gonzalez added a third place time (18:53.17) in the 1650 Free later in the meet.

Peterson added a victory in the 100 Breaststroke, with the Blue finishing 1-2-3, as Chiou took second (1:11.92) and Wegner was third (1:12.95). The Blue continued to dominate the meet in the next event, the 100 Backstroke, taking five of the top-six spots in the event. Hsu won the event, touching the wall in 1:01.91. May was second in 1:01.98, with Wegner, senior Kayleigh Svensson (Palo Alto, Calif.) and first year Melanie Zhang (Westlake Village, Calif.) finishing in fourth (1:03.62), fifth (1:04.64), and sixth (1:07.21), respectively.

The Blue earned the top-two spots in the 800 Freestyle Relay. The Wellesley 'A' Relay of Peterson, Haley, sophomore Shelby Ripp (St. Louis, Mo.) and May were first in 8:11.62. The Blue's 'B' Relay of first year Alexindra Wheeler (Reading, Mass.), sophomore Alexandra Bullen-Smith (Lawrenceville, N.J.), Dutton, Gonzalez followed in 8:33.13.

Wellesley swept the final five swimming events in the meet on Sunday evening, beginning with a 1-2 finish from Svensson and Ripp in the 200 Backstroke. Svensson took the event in 2:12.47, with Ripp finishing in 2:16.45. The Blue also earned the top three spots in the 100 Freestyle and the top-two spots in the 200 Breaststroke, while Haley captured the 200 Fly in 2:14.38. In 3-Meter Diving, sophomore Emma Roberts (Boxford, Mass.) was the top Wellesley finisher, scoring 321.35 in her 11-dives to take fifth.

May added another victory in the 100 Freestyle, earning first in 54.16. Hsu was second in 55.48 and Wegner was third in the 55.71. In the 200 Breaststroke, Peterson outpaced her teammate Chiou, winning in 2:34.19, while Chiou was the runner-up in 2:37.92. With a sizeable lead in meet scoring, the Blue closed out the weekend with a final victory in the 400 Free Relay. Peterson, Hsu, Gonzalez, and May finished in 3:41.92.

Wellesley will take on Merrimack and Brandeis in the team's final tune-up before the New England Women's & Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Championships next Saturday, January 25, at 1:00 PM at the Andover YMCA.