Senior Day ended with mixed results for the Georgetown men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams. On Saturday, Feb. 4, the men (4-7) toppled Lafayette with a final score of 175-119, while the women (7-5) were narrowly defeated by the Leopards, 151-149. Four different Hoyas recorded Big East Championships qualifying times in front of a supportive crowd at McCarthy Pool.
“The atmosphere was perfect for fast swimming,” Head Coach Bethany Bower said, expressing her gratitude for the buzz at the pool.
For the women’s team, sophomore Caitlin Colling qualified for next week’s Big East Championships while winning the 200-yard freestyle event in addition to placing second and third in the 50- and 100-yard freestyle races, respectively. Colling will be joined at the championships by fellow sophomores Tori Maffey and Claire Nugent. Maffey claimed the top spot in the 200-yard backstroke, and Nugent grabbed first in the 200-yard butterfly event. In their final home meet, a pair of the team’s senior tri-captains shone. Corinne Rhodes beat out her opponents in the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke races while Katie Amaro crawled to victory in the 500- and 1000-yard freestyle events.
“If we had gotten a point here or a point there we could have pulled out a win. I can’t be anything but happy we kept it that close,” Bower said.
The men were able to crush Lafayette with the help of senior divers Doug Curran and Santini Reali. Curran qualified for the Big East Championships in the one-meter diving event with a first place score of 256.68 and followed this performance with a second place finish in the three-meter event. Reali allowed the Hoyas to sweep the top spots, grabbing first and second in the three- and one-meter events, respectively. Senior tri-captain Heath Walden paced Georgetown’s first place 200-yard medley relay team, along with a trio of freshman—Daniel Robinson, David Ballinger, and Goran Bistric.
This weekend several swimmers and divers will attempt once more to qualify for the Big East Championships, adding to what Bower stated as “one of the largest groups we’ve had.” Next Wednesday, the Hoyas will send each of the qualifiers to compete in the Big East Championships, held at the Nassau County Aquatics Center in East Meadows, NY.
