November 17, 2012
H2Okies close out the H2Okie Fall Invitational in first place
Savage sets school record and remains undefeated
F
ACC Championships
Virginia Tech

CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. – On the final day of the H2Okie Fall Invitational, the Virginia Tech swimming and diving program claimed 11 of the 14 events to win the five-team pool on Saturday evening at the Christiansburg Aquatic Center. Overall, Tech claimed 31 event titles, two school records, one pool record and had 12 H2Okies record NCAA qualifying times with all relay teams hitting marks as well.

Senior Heather Savage completed the fall season undefeated as she broke her own school record in the 200 butterfly that was set at the 2012 ACC Championships with a NCAA B qualifying time of 1:57.24.

The Tech women finished first with a total of 1491.50 points, while South Carolina followed with 804. With a score of 520.50, Connecticut placed third and William & Mary and Liberty rounded out the bottom with 514 and 331, respectively.

For the men, the No. 15 H2Okies placed first with a score of 1523, while the No. 21 Gamecocks followed in at second with 1021.50. The Huskies finished third with 511 and the Tribe rounded out the pack with 467.50.

The night started off with the 1650 freestyle. Tech swept both events as Laura Simon dominated the women’s side. The senior touched the wall almost 10 seconds faster than any other competitor as she swam a time of 16:42.17. On the men’s side, Jake Ores swam the first B standard time of the night, coming in at 15:29.20.

The H2Okies kept the momentum going sweeping the next event. Brittany Boone swam a time of 1:59.23 to win the women’s 200 backstroke, while Zach McGinnis touched the wall at the B standard 1:44.07 mark to take it for the men.

Sophomore Collin Higgins took second, swimming his first NCAA B standard time of 1:46.24.

Katarina Filova won the women’s 100 freestyle with a time of 50.33, while Emily Ryczek followed in second place with a time of 50.60. For the men, Joe Bonk continued Tech’s winning streak, taking the event with a time of 44.40.

The H2Okies dropped its first race of the night, as USC’s Amanda Rutqvist took the women’s 200 breaststroke with a pool-record 2:09.97. Alyssa Bodin placed second with a B standard time of 2:14.99. Keri Sink followed in third with a time of 2:16.64.

South Carolina took the men’s 200 breaststroke as well. Alex Vance swam a time of 2:01.38 to collect the Gamecocks first men’s event. Owen Burns placed second with a time of 2:02.36, while Emmett Dignan followed in at third at the 2:03.03 mark.

The Gamecocks took their final event as Michael Flach swam a time of 1:45.51 to win the men’s 200 butterfly. Morgan Latimer (1:46.48), Greg Mahon (1:47.22) and Nick Tremols (1:47.33) followed and took the next three spots with all B standard times, respectively.

The H2Okies were the only team to compete in the diving portion this evening. The men and women combined for the finals of the platform event. Senior Logan Shinholser was victorious on the men’s side with a score of 431.40 to conclude the three-event sweep.

Kelli Stockton took first on the women’s side. The sophomore racked in a score of 308.48, while Kaylea Arnett placed second, hitting a 258.75 mark. Senior Logan Kline recorded a third-place finished with a total of 241.35.

The 400 freestyle relay team of Savage, Filova, Gabrielle Bishop and Ryczek won the final race of the night for the women with a B standard time of 3:20.99. The men did the same thing winning the final event. The quartet of McGinnis, Bonk, Burns and Lucas Bureau swam a B time of 2:56.50 to conclude the night.

The swimmers capped off their fall season, as the H2Okie divers will finish up in two weeks as they travel to Athens, Ga., for the George Diving Invitational on Friday, Nov. 30 for a three-day event.

For updates on Virginia Tech swimming & diving, follow the Hokies on Twitter (@VT_SwimDive).

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