Ten Wolverines Conclude Action at U.S. Olympic Trials

U-M Results

OMAHA, Neb. C Ten current and future members of the University of Michigan women's swimming and diving team participated in the 2008 United States Olympic Team Trials this past week (June 29 - July 6) at the Qwest Center in Omaha, Neb., but none secured a spot on the national roster for the upcoming Olympic Games in Beijing, China.

Junior Emily Brunemann(Crescent Springs, Ky./Notre Dame Academy) -- the defending NCAA champion in the 1,650-yard freestyle -- came closest to taking part in an event final. Brunemann came within 16-tenths of a second of earning a spot in the 800-meter freestyle final, clocking in at 8:37.81. On Monday (June 30), Brunemann was one spot away from a semifinal berth in the 400-meter freestyle, coming in 17th place on a 4:14.74 performance. She also took part in the 400-meter individual medley, placing 26th.

Senior Justine Mueller(Monroe, Mich./Monroe) swam her way into the 200-meter individual medley semifinals, finishing 12th on a time of 2:14.74. At the 400-meter distance in the IM, she missed joining the semifinal field by two places, touching the wall in 4:47.19 for 18th place. Mueller also placed 37th in the 100-meter breaststroke, swimming at 1:11.20.

Sophomore Margaret Kelly(Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer) produced a pair of top 20 finishes during her Olympic bid. Kelly placed 15th in the 100-meter butterfly, clocking in at 1:00.16 during the semifinal round, slightly off the 59.79 pace she set during the preliminaries. She was also the top Wolverine finisher in the 200-meter individual medley, finding the wall in 2:15.98 for a 17th-place finish. She also swam the 50-yard freestyle and the 200-meter butterfly, coming in 44th and 55th, respectively.

Senior Melissa Jaeger(Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer) had a triumvirate of events to tackle, swimming in both butterfly events and the 100-meter breaststroke. She slotted into the top 30 in both butterfly races, placing 22nd in the 200-meter race with a 2:13.14 showing and tied for 28th position in the 100-meter swim on a time of 1:00.45. Jaeger came in 63rd in the 100-meter breaststroke, touching the wall in 2:13.14.

Junior Hannah Smith(Dexter, Mich./Dexter) competed in both backstroke events, placing 30th in the 200-meter event on a time of 2:15.20 and 100th at the 100-meter distance. In addition, Smith swam the 50-meter freestyle in 26.37 for 64th place.

Sophomore Emily Hanson(Bloomington, Ill./Normal Community) scored 32nd in her lone event, touching the wall at 8:50.61 in the 800-meter freestyle. Additionally, sophomore Emily Christy(Schwenksville, Pa./Spring-Ford Area Senior) was 66th in the 200-meter butterfly on a 2:17.19 performance and junior Payton Johnson(Champaign, Ill./Centennial) finished tied for 81st in the 100-meter butterfly with a 1:02.04 clip.

A pair of incoming freshmen also took part in the trials. Kristyne Cole(Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer) swam in two events, placing 70th in the 400-meter freestyle and 100th in the 200-meter freestyle. Liz Koselka(Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer) joined her future teammate in the 200-meter freestyle, finishing 94th.

Michigan placed swimmers in 23 women's swimming events at the trials, which continue through Sunday (July 6th). Complete trials results can be found at the USA Swimming website www.usaswimming.org.