Michigan
Georgia Fall Invitational
Wolverines Seize Title at UGA Fall Invitational
12/3/2017 6:20:00 PM | Women's Swimming & Diving
» The fourth-ranked Wolverines led wire-to-wire to win the team title, posting 991.5 points and beating second-place Georgia by 158 points.
» Michigan had a pair of 1-2 finishes on Sunday: Yirong Bi and G Ryan in the 1,650-yard freestyle; Miranda Tucker and Emily Kopas in the 200-yard breaststroke.
» Siobhán Haughey lowered her previously held school record in the 100-yard freestyle (47.20). It's her second school-record swim of the weekend. She was also a part of the record-setting 400-yard freestyle relay (3:12.21), along with Catie DeLoof, Gabby DeLoof and Bi.
Site: Athens, Ga. (Gabrielsen Natatorium)
Event: UGA Fall Invitational -- Day 3 of 3
U-M Team Standing: 1st of 7 teams (991.5 points)
Next U-M Event: Wed-Mon., Dec. 13-18 -- at USA Diving Winter National Championships (Greensboro, N.C.), TBA
ATHENS, Ga. -- Led by seven top-two individual finishes and school-record swims from Siobhán Haughey and the 400-yard freestyle relay, the No. 4-ranked University of Michigan women's swimming and diving team closed out the first half of the season with the team title at the UGA Fall Invitational, which concluded Sunday (Dec. 3) at Gabrielsen Natatorium. The Wolverines finished with 991.5 points, beating second-place Georgia by 158 points.
"It was the best midseason meet for our combined team that we've ever had," said head coach Mike Bottom. "It was fun to watch from top-to-bottom. Our student-athletes were doing best times or getting close to their best times, and reaching times that were invited to NCAAs last year."
"We're thinking big picture. We weren't a top-10 team last year. This year, we're chasing the great teams. That's the fun thing about being where we are. We know that we can be better than we were last year and we have a team that can do it. Just have to put it together."
The Wolverines went 1-2 in a pair of events on Sunday, beginning in the 1,650-yard freestyle with junior Yirong Bi (16:02.42) and senior G Ryan (16:05.88). Bi now ranks ninth in the NCAA this year, while Ryan, who made their season debut two days ago, now sits at No. 12. Freshman Sierra Schmidt also had a great swim, finishing fourth with the 10th-best time in school history (16:15.42).
As it did yesterday, Michigan looked strong in breaststroke, sending four swimmers to the final of the 200-yard event. Sophomore Miranda Tucker had a three-second time drop from preliminaries to finals, winning in 2:08.73, the second-best time in school history. Senior Emily Kopas, the school record-holder in that event, finished second (2:09.75). Also in the final were seniors Carolyn McCann in sixth (2:12.97) and Samantha Yeo in seventh (2:13.24).
Though she didn't win, Haughey lowered yet another one of her previously-held school records, finishing second to California's Abbey Weitzeil, an Olympic medalist, in the 100-yard freestyle (47.20). Haughey went 47.22 at the SMU Classic in October, which stood as the school record until Sunday. Senior Gabby DeLoof finished fifth (48.35) and junior Catie DeLoof finished sixth (48.60; went 48.45 in preliminaries), ending the day with the third- and fourth-fastest times in school history behind Haughey and older sister, Ali DeLoof.
The 400-yard freestyle relay closed the meet by making some history, setting a new school record with a third-place finish (3:12.21). The relay included Catie DeLoof, Haughey, Gabby DeLoof and Bi.
Senior Clara Smiddy came within a few hundredths of reaching the NCAA "A" cut in the 200-yard backstroke, finishing second (1:51.03). She was the team's lone representative in the final; Gabby DeLoof had qualified seventh (1:54.71), but elected not to swim, choosing instead to focus on the 100-yard freestyle.
Sophomore Vanessa Krause took seventh in the 200-yard butterfly (1:56.79), but it was a trio of her freshmen teammates who all entered their names in the record books in the consolation final. Emma Cleason went nearly two-and-a-half seconds better in finals to post a 1:56.64, the fourth-best time in school history. Schmidt, who swam the mile only an hour earlier, is now No. 9 on that list (1:58.00) and Kate Krolikowski is No. 10 (1:58.41).
Three divers scored in the top 10 on platform, led by Christy Cutshaw, who finished second with an NCAA Zone Diving qualifying score (265.40). Freshman Nikki Canale was seventh (218.25) and senior Dani VanderZwaag was 10th (193.70).
Canale and Cutshaw will represent Michigan at the USA Diving Winter National Championships, held Dec. 13-18 in Greensboro, North Carolina. The full team is back in action after the new year, returning to Canham Natatorium to face Big Ten rival Indiana on Jan. 13. The meet begins at 11 a.m.
NCAA QUALIFYING TIMES/SCORES
Preliminaries - p
1,650-yard Freestyle
B -- Yirong Bi, 16:02.42
B -- G Ryan, 16:05.88
B -- Sierra Schmidt, 16:15.42 (No. 10 at U-M)
200-yard Backstroke
B -- Clara Smiddy, 1:51.03
B -- Gabby DeLoof, 1:54.71p
B -- Jacqui Schafer, 1:56.09
100-yard Freestyle
A -- Siobhán Haughey, 47.20 (No. 1 at U-M)
B -- Gabby DeLoof, 48.35 (No. 3 at U-M)
B -- Catie DeLoof, 48.37p (No. 4 at U-M)
B -- Daria Pyshnenko, 49.86
B -- Becca Postoll, 49.98
200-yard Breaststroke
B -- Miranda Tucker, 2:08.73 (No. 2 at U-M)
B -- Emily Kopas, 2:09.75
B -- Carolyn McCann, 2:12.97
B -- Samantha Yeo, 2:13.24
B -- Jamie Yeung, 2:14.73p
200-yard Butterfly
B -- Vanessa Krause, 1:56.09p
B -- Emma Cleason, 1:56.64 (No. 4 at U-M)
B -- Sierra Schmidt, 1:58.00 (No. 9 at U-M)
B -- Kate Krolikowski, 1:58.41
Platform Diving
265.40, Christy Cutshaw
400-yard Freestyle Relay
A -- 3:12.21 (Catie DeLoof, Siobhán Haughey, Gabby DeLoof, Yirong Bi)
Players Mentioned
