Blue Downs Gold, Adams top individual swimmer
October 15, 2012
Jamie Foland
474-6807
The Alaska women's swim team competed against each other on Saturday afternoon for its annual Blue-Gold Pentathlon and it was Team Blue coming away with the win over Team Gold, 321-379, at the Patty Center Pool.
"There were a lot of great swims," head coach Scott Lemley said. "The swims reflect the training and that always is the way it should be. They were all very fast, we used entry times based on last year's results, so we can see across the board that everybody's faster this year at the same time of last year."
Sophomore Margot Adams (Anchorage, Alaska) was the top individual swimmer, as she tallied eight points with a pair of wins and three runner-up showings. She also set a new pool record in the 100 yard butterfly with a time of 56.55 seconds, besting her own previous record of 56.70, set last January.
Adams also won the 100 individual medley in a time of 1:00.36, which clinched the individual title, while placing second in the 100 backstroke (59.77), 100 breaststroke (1:10.65) and 100 freestyle (55.04).
"She had a very good meet," Lemley said. That time in fly (56.55) is a second and a half under the NCAA 'B-cut' and she's within a second or so of the 'A-cut' already and we haven't had our first meet yet. I think that bodes well."
Following Adams individually were sophomores Samantha Taylor (Ladera Ranch, Calif.) and Danielle Lyons (Prince Albert, Saskatchewan), who took second and third with 10 and 18 points, respectively.
Taylor won the 100 back (58.85) and 100 breast (1:10.22) while finishing second in the 100 fly (1:00.58) and 100 IM (1:01.99) and fourth in the 100 free (56.46).
Lyons, who won the Blue-Gold event in 2011, had a trio of third-place finishes in the fly (1:00.99), free (55.56) and IM (1:02.77) while also taking fourth in the back (1:03.15) and fifth in the breast (1:12.29).
Rounding out the top five individually were junior Bente Heller (Hamburg, Germany) and sophomore Gabi Summers (Cheyenne, Wyo.) with 25 and 29 points, respectively.
In the 200 medley relay, which counted for team totals only, Blue's foursome consisting of Taylor, freshman Eileen Audette (Seward, Alaska), Lyons and sophomore Genevieve Johnson (Fresno, Calif.) won the race in 1:51.99, besting Gold's tandem of Summers, senior Sarah Meierotto (Fairbanks, Alaska), Adams and Heller by a narrow .29 seconds (1:52.28).
The Nanooks open the regular season Oct. 26 and 27 when they host California Baptist in a pair of dual meets at the Patty Center Pool. Friday's meet will begin at 6 p.m. with Saturday's meet set for a noon start.
"This was a tough test and the end of the first phase of our training," Lemley said. "Next week, we'll take it easy, do videotaping, let them make the gains of their training by backing off a little bit. We'll start the tough training again the week of Cal Baptist."