The Seattle University swim teams continued their strong start to the winter portion of the 2015-16 season, as the Redhawk men defeated Whitworth University, 116-88, while the women cruised past the Pirates, 135-68, Saturday afternoon at the Whitworth Aquatics Center.
“I am pleased with the performances this weekend. The women took care of business with several strong swims. On the men’s side, both meets were close until late, and then our guys were able to close things out. I believe we will be ready for our upcoming meets over the next couple of weeks,” Seattle U head swim coach Craig Nisgor said.
On the men’s side, the Redhawks won six individual events, with six different Seattle U swimmers picking up victories. Austin Barnard (Mill Creek, Wash.) won the 1650 freestyle with a time of 16:25.93, followed by a close victory by Mitchell Crossen (Puyallup, Wash.) in the 200 freestyle in 1:47.39, just over a half-second ahead of his nearest competitor.
Tanner Schelling (Boise, Idaho) led a 1-2-3 Redhawk finish in the 50 freestyle with a winning time of 21.22 seconds, followed by Jack Baldoni (Applegate, Calif.) in 21.74 seconds and Matt Morris (Lufkin, Texas) in 21.97 seconds. Alec Barnard (Everett, Wash.) won the 200 butterfly with a time of 1:55.79, followed by Connor Webb (Hood River, Ore.) in 1:57.21.
Morgan Montemayor (Seattle, Wash.) finished first in the 200 backstroke by less than 3/10ths of a second with a time of 1:53.53. Webb led a Seattle U 1-2 placing in the 200 breaststroke, touching the wall first with a time of 2:08.29, followed by Ben Nussbaum (Issaquah, Wash.) in 2:11.42.
The quartet of Alec Barnard, Schelling, Baldoni, and Crossen wrapped up the meet with a victory in the 200 freestyle relay with a time of 1:25.84.
The Seattle U women took 9 of 11 events to win their second dual meet in as many days. Three Redhawks earned two individual event victories each, including senior Jane Liggett (Portland, Ore.), who won the 200 freestyle in 1:57.99 and the 200 butterfly in 2:08.84.
Madi Lydig (Spokane, Wash.) earned two more individual victories in her hometown, first prevailing in the 1650 freestyle with a time of 18:02.55, followed by a win in the 200 backstroke in 2:05.84. Blaise Wittenauer-Lee (Portland, Ore.) dominated the 200 individual medley by over eight seconds, finishing first in 2:06.75, and then she won the 100 freestyle in 52.67 seconds.
Paige Treff (Orland, Calif.) finished first in the 50 freestyle with a time of 24.35 seconds, ahead of teammate Maddie Dickman’s (Sacramento, Calif.) time of 25.48 seconds. Annika Perry (Reno, Nev.) picked up Seattle U’s final victory of the meet, winning the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:26.68.
The Seattle University swim teams head to Colorado Springs, Colo., for two meets hosted by the U.S. Air Force Academy Friday, Jan. 15, and Saturday, Jan. 16.