The Observer, November 3, 2006
Volume XXXIX, Issue 9
Case swim teams start winter season with a splash
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The Case men's and women's swim teams hosted Allegheny College at the Veale Natatorium this past Saturday. The Spartan men prevailed 143-94 in their first dual meet of the season, while the Spartan women came up short by a score of 134-89. Both teams have been practicing under the tutelage of head coach Chris Conlon since Sept. 18.
The Spartan men started the meet off right with a victory in the 400-yard medley relay. Freshman Drew Swarz, grad student Pat Rodjom, sophomore John Somerville, and freshman Bryan Saltzman combined to outswim the Allegheny "A" squad by nearly three seconds. Freshmen Rachel Gostomelsky and Edward McKee followed with commanding performances in the 1000-yard freestyle, finishing second and first, respectively.
Chrissy Petzold reigned victorious and Dan Wolak took second in the 200-yard freestyle, continuing the streak of freshman dominance. Junior Becca Winarski posted an impressive 26.49 in the 50-yard freestyle, while senior John Erickson swam a sizzling 21.79. The time is an in-season best for Erickson.
Sophomore Lisa McHale triumphed for the ladies in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:20.77. On the men's side, the 1-2-3 punch of freshman Jerry Lin, Rodjom, and Somerville was too much for Allegheny to handle. The Spartan men took the top three slots again in the 200-yard butterfly, led by the trio of freshman Barak Daon, senior Dan Donato, and freshman Wesley Aasen.
Winarski won the 100-yard freestyle for the women, while Wolak and Lin proceeded to post blistering sub-50 second times. The Case men ended up taking the top six places in the event: Erickson, sophomore Brian Grady, Saltzman, and sophomore Brandon Pyle followed the two freshman phenoms.
Swarz and senior Camilla Cullis then demonstrated Case's dominance in the "red zone," touching out opponents by 19 hundredths of a second in the 200-yard backstroke and 18 hundredths of a second in the 500-yard freestyle, respectively. Furthermore, sophomore Janine Machala touched out her opponent by three hundredths of a second to win the 200-yard breaststroke. The victory was the first of her collegiate career.
Two-time national qualifier Rodjom placed first on the men's side in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:14.92. Junior diver Bernie Jacobson took third on one-meter and second on three-meter.
Perhaps the most exciting swims of the meet were saved for the women's and men's 400 freestyle relays. Sophomore Betsy Howe, Petzold, Winarski, and Gostomelsky managed to hang on and beat Allegheny by one hundredth of a second. For the men, Grady, Lin, Wolak, and Erickson combined to swim a commanding 3:20.15.
"I think our success at the meet is a really positive indicator of how hard we have been working," Coach Conlon said. "We are seeing some of the technique changes we have made begin to pay off and are racing hard. Good vibes abound on the pool deck, and I'm looking forward to an exciting season."
The Spartan men and women travel to Pittsburgh to take on Carnegie Mellon, Emory, and Johns Hopkins at the CMU Quad tomorrow and Sunday.
