Abundance of Whitman School Records Set on Final Night of the NWC Championships
Federal Way, Wash. – The final night of competition at the Northwest Conference Championships at the King County Aquatics Center saw a frenzy of Whitman school marks fall as the Missionaries tore through the pool, setting records in several races and obtaining numerous NCAA meet B cut times.
The Men posted a second place finish for the meet while the Women came in third.
In the individual races, Galen Sollom-Brotherton (Jr., Dublin, CA) repeated as champion in the 1,650 freestyle, recording a B cut time of 15:47.53, and taking home his third individual crown of the championships, adding to his titles in the 500 free and 400 IM.
Karl Mering (So., Boise, ID) not only set a new Whitman mark, but also a conference and championship meet record in the 100 free with a 45.46, good also for a B cut time, and also his third meet title, as he finished first earlier in the 100 butterfly (conference and meet record) and the 50 free.Mering was named the championship meet’s Men’s Outstanding Swimmer, making it two consecutive year's a Whitman swimmer has received the honor -- Sollom-Brotherton last year.
Paul Chang (Sr., Carson City, NV) set a new school-best and also achieved a B cut when he finished second in the 200 breast at 2:06.36. Nick Wechter (Fr., Pittsburgh, PA) followed right behind with a fourth place (2:09.89), Robby Dorn (Fr. Edina, MN) with a fifth (2:11.52), and Kevin Wallin (Fr., Portland, OR) a ninth (2:14.19), netting the Missionaries 58 points in the one event.
In the 200 backstroke, Nic Win (So., Bothell, WA) brought down another school record with his second place finish of 1:53.68.
Claire Collins (Jr., Burlingame, CA) set another school mark and recorded a faster B cut time when she touched the wall second in the 200 breast at 2:20.59.
Cameo Hlebasko (Fr., Bainbridge Island, WA) set a new school record (2:07.96) in the 200 backstroke with her second place finish, shaving more than 2 seconds off her morning prelim time (2:10.20).
The Women picked up substantial points in the 200 fly when Katie Chapman (Sr., Redmond, WA) and Mel Notari (Jr., Bellevue, WA) went 4 and 5 with respective times of 2:10.13 and 2:11.90.
Other notable performances, Kevin Dyer (Sr., Carson City, NV) finished seventh in the 1,650 free (17:07.28 ). Ashley Jay (So., Brier, WA) finished eighth in the 1,650 with a time of 18:19.74.
In the relays, the Whitman Men set a new meet and school record in the 400 free with a time of 3:06.10 –Starr, Chang, Sollom-Brotherton and Mering doing the honors. The Women finished fifth in the 400 relay.
The Men amassed a total of 627.5 points, far outdistancing third place PLU at 481. Whitworth took the title with 724.5. The Women finished third, just 4 points behind Puget Sound, 453 to 457.
After the meet ended, Whitman Head Coach Jenn Blomme said, “It was an unbelievable weekend. I am overcome by the amazing teamwork, talent, and fortitude of our swimmers! The number of records, NCAA cuts, and meet records we set . . . astounding!”
Blomme was named Men’s Coach of the Year for the second consecutive season and for the third time in the last four (Blomme also won the award in 2010).
The meet signals the finish to a very successful 2012 – 2013 NWC season in which the Men went 7 – 0 in in the regular season and handed Whitworth its first dual meet loss in over 14 years when the Missionaries bested the Pirates back on January 6 at Harvey Pool. The Women recorded a 5 – 2 mark as they battled through several injuries and illness to key swimmers.
For complete NWC Championships Meet results visit: http://livestats.willamette.edu/live/nwc/swimming/#
Contact:
Andrew Holt
Whitman Sports Information Director
509.527.5902