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Records fall as Herons take 6th at NYSWCAA Championships
February 21, 2005
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Senior Becky Grossman rewrote the William Smith records book at the NYSWCAA Championships with four individual school records and two relay records. (Photo by K. Colton/ SPORTSPICS.NET) |
GENEVA, N.Y.—The William Smith College swimming and diving team broke five school records, matched a sixth, and garnered six top-two finishes to take sixth place of 15 teams at the NYSWCAA Championships this past weekend. Union won the meet, while Le Moyne College took second.
Senior Becky Grossman (Mercersburg Academy/Penfield, N.Y.) had an outstanding weekend, breaking three individual school records, matching a fourth, and helping two relays establish new records. Junior diver Sarah Costanza (Gwynedd Mercy/Ambler, Pa.) also added another honor to her long list, earning the Diver of the Meet award.
William Smith sent its first record tumbling in the opening event, as first-years Meredith Eppers (Orchard Park/Orchard Park, N.Y.) and Meghan Mosher (Livonia/Conesus, N.Y.) and seniors Jenny Fowler (Westfield/Westfield, N.J.) and Grossman teamed up to win the 200-yard freestyle relay with a record time of 1:39.84. Grossman anchored the relay with an outstanding 23.89 split to pass Le Moyne in the final leg.
Grossman captured her second victory and school record of the day in the 50 free, touching the wall in 24.46. Her time also exceeded the NCAA “B” qualifying standard. Mosher joined Grossman in the top eight, taking seventh with a personal best time of 25.28.
The following morning in preliminaries, sophomore Charlotte McIntosh (Blair Academy/Reading, Pa.), Fowler, Grossman, and Mosher rewrote the records book again with a time of 1:53.64 in the 200 medley relay. They finished fifth overall (1:53.67) in the finals later that evening.
Adding to her list of achievements, Grossman erased a 20-year old in the 100 fly, going 58.19 in the prelims. She earned runner-up honors in the finals. With both of her previous times in the 100 butterfly exceeding the NCAA “B” qualifying standard, Grossman time trialed the event the following morning. Racing out to a 26.97 in the first 50 yards—also a new school record—Grossman touched in at 57.71, automatically qualifying for the NCAA Championship meet and breaking the record she set the day before.
Grossman closed out the meet with a second place performance in the 100 freestyle (53.65). In the prelims of the event, she matched the school record time of 53.46.
Fowler and McIntosh also turned in strong individual performances. Fowler grabbed fourth place in the 400 individual medley with a time of 4:53.48, while McIntosh took seventh in the 100 backstroke with a time of 1:03.60.
In diving action, Costanza finished second in both the 1-meter and 3-meter competitions. On the 1-meter board, she scored 357.28, just 1.34 behind the winner, and posted a 396.45 mark in the 3-meter event.
Undefeated in dual meets, Costanza has finished among the top two in every meet this season, including capturing the 1-meter Liberty League crown. Surpassing the NCAA qualifying standard three times this season, she will find out on Feb. 25, if she is invited to compete in the NCAA Championship meet for the second consecutive year.