Michigan
Indiana
Women's Swimming and Diving Defeats Indiana in Big Ten Bout
1/13/2018 4:35:00 PM | Women's Swimming & Diving
» The Wolverines have now won four consecutive duals against Indiana, and their last 22 duals against Big Ten opponents. Michigan and Indiana are the two highest-ranked teams in the Big Ten.
» The Wolverines went 1-2-3 in four freestyle events (50-, 100-, 500-, 1,000-yard) and 1-2 in the 200-yard freestyle. Four different swimmers won those events.
» Clara Smiddy won two events, beating the defending Big Ten champions in both the 200-yard IM and 200-yard backstroke.
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Canham Natatorium)
Score: No. 4 Michigan 180, No. 10 Indiana 120
Records: U-M (6-0, 4-0 B1G), IU (3-4, 0-1 B1G)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Jan. 20 -- at Ohio State, vs. Virginia Tech, vs. Rutgers (Columbus, Ohio), noon
• Photo Gallery | Complete Results
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Behind a dominating performance in the freestyle, the No. 4-ranked University of Michigan women's swimming and diving team opened the second half of the season with a 180-120 win over No. 10 Indiana in front of a near-capacity crowd on Saturday (Jan. 13) at Canham Natatorium.
"I'm so impressed with the way this team competed today," said head coach Mike Bottom. "We had to make some changes due to Siobhán (Haughey) not swimming today, but our captains led us and the whole team really responded to that. They filled in where we needed to. Our fight was outstanding."
The Wolverines built their edge in the five freestyle events, going 1-2-3 in both the sprint (50, 100) and distance (500, 1,000) varieties. Four different swimmers won: senior Gabby DeLoof in both the 100-yard freestyle (49.17) and 200-yard freestyle (1:46.21), junior Yirong Bi in the 500-yard freestyle (4:44.53), freshman Sierra Schmidt in the 1,000-yard freestyle (9:50.11) and junior Catie DeLoof in the 50-yard freestyle (22.77). Senior G Ryan was third in both distance events, while the team also got a boost from freshman Daria Pyshnenko in the sprints, who was runner-up to Catie DeLoof in the 50-yard freestyle. They also went 1-2 in the 400-yard freestyle relay to end the meet, with Gabby DeLoof, Catie DeLoof, Bi and sophomore Vanessa Krause clocking in at 3:19.36.
Senior Clara Smiddy posted a pair of victories, both against defending Big Ten champions. She toppled Lilly King in the 200-yard IM by nearly three seconds (1:59.57) and out-touched Kennedy Goss in the 200-yard backstroke (1:55.20). Krause, the only Indiana native on the roster, was the other individual event winner, who used a big back half to win the 200-yard butterfly (1:58.48).
Michigan showcased its depth in the breaststroke. Though King, an Olympic gold medalist, won both the 100- and 200-yard events, the Wolverines went 2-3-4 behind her with senior Emily Kopas, sophomore Miranda Tucker -- a former Hoosier -- and junior Jamie Yeung.
Freshman diver Nikki Canale pushed Indiana Olympian Jessica Parratto in the three-meter diving event, missing the win by fewer than two points (332.70). She also took second on one-meter (284.95).
The Wolverines return to action next Saturday (Jan. 20), facing Ohio State, Virginia Tech and Rutgers in a quad meet in Columbus, Ohio. The meet begins at noon.
Players Mentioned
