Wheeling, WV -The Wheeling Jesuit men’s and women’s swim teams won the 2012 Appalachian Swimming and Diving Conference Championships on Saturday evening at the Stivers Aquatic Center in Barbourville, Ky.
The Jesuit men flew to five first place finishes and captured their third-straight ASC title by a 237-point margin of victory over Asbury University (645-408). The Cardinal women soared above the back-to-back runner-up finishes (2010, 2011) to claim the 2012 Women’s ASC Championship, while claiming six races en route to a 556.5-510 victory.
In addition, Wheeling Jesuit University Swimming posted a combined team score of 1,201.5, which was 283.5 points better than runner-up Asbury University.
Henrique Fructuozo added a second-consecutive ASC Men’s Swimmer of the Year award, touching first in four of the men’s top five finishes. The sophomore from Jaragua Do Sul, Brazil opened his second ASC Championship meet with a win in the 500-yard Freestyle with a time of 4:38.82 which was .06 seconds away from the pace he set as a freshman, 4:38.76.
After securing a second first place finish with the record-setting 800-yard Freestyle relay team of Patrick Chadowski, Fructuozo, Max Queale and Thomas Smith, the two-time ASC Swimmer of the year claimed the pole position in the 400-yard Individual Medley and 1650-yard Freestyle events. Rounding out the first place finishes and setting a conference record for the men’s squads were Smith, Thomas Moore, Chadowski and Queale in the 400-yard Freestyle relay with a time of 3:09.24.
Lydia Kidd led stopped the timer first five times. Kidd set a new school record and conference mark of 1:06.77 in the 100-yard Breaststroke, recapturing the standard she set a year ago at 1:06.98. She went on to win the finals and added the 200-yard Breaststroke to her resume. In addition, Kidd was a member of three relay teams, two of which set new school and conference records.
The 400-yard Medley Relay team of Paige Carpenetti, Emily Martin, Kidd and Casey Hamilton set a new school and conference mark of 3:59.19, eclipsing the 3:59.58 standard set in 2011. The same group won the 200-yard Medley Relay with a time of 1:50.75, while the 800-yard Freestyle Relay team of Kidd, Jessica Steve, Meghan Ebbert and Martin erased the time of 7:53.26 with a time of 7:52.73 for a dual record. Martin completed the women’s winning ways with a first place stoppage in the 200-yard Freestyle with a time of 1:57.35.
The Cardinals received several impressive performances which included 14 trips to the winners’ podium with second and third place finishes. Ebbert and Martin captured a pair of second place finishes. Ebbert placed second in the 200-yard Individual Medley and Breaststroke, while Martin used the 200 and 100 yard Butterfly events for her second place nod.
Chadowski and Queale also made additional appearances on the stand. Chadowski took second in the 200-yard Butterfly and third in the 200-yard Individual Medley, while Queale turned in a pair of third place finishes in the 100 and 50 yard Freestyle races. Kidd and Carpenetti landed second place finishes in the 400-yard Individual Medley and the 200-yard Backstroke, respectively, while Michael Viscardi completed individual winners with a third place showing in the 200-yard Breaststroke.
Three relay teams supported the effort as men’s (Smith, Chadowski, Moore and Queale) and women’s (Hamilton, Ebbert, Steve and Samantha Hilditch) 200-yard Freestyle teams placed second and third. The men’s 400-yard Medley Relay team of Evan Barrow, Bill Risse, Chadowski and Queale placed second.
The WJU motto of “Individuals Win Races, Teams Win Championships” proved to be a profound statement, as the Cardinals faced many hardships and overcame several obstacles on the quest for an Appalachian Swimming and Diving Championship.
Discussion about this post