Women's Swimming & Diving 2/15/2015 3:35:00 AM Marist Athletics

Women's Swimming and Diving Wins Sixth Straight MAAC Title

BUFFALO, N.Y. – The Marist women's swimming and diving team captured its sixth straight Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Championship on Saturday at Erie Community College's Burt Flickinger Athletic Center. With 860 points the Red Foxes won by their largest margin program history, overtaking Canisius by 332 points.

The Red Foxes won the 28th MAAC title overall for the Marist swimming and diving program and 32nd overall conference title. The women's program has now won a total of 20 MAAC Championships.

Marist built an enormous lead on Day Two and maintained it on the final day of the conference championships with first place finishes from freshman Karly Haraden (Ballston Spa, N.Y.) in the 1,650-yard freestyle (17:04.70) and sophomore Isabella Morreale (Short Hills, N.J.) in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:20.49).

Sophomore Meredith Wurtz (Lafayette Hill, Pa.) finished second in the 100-yard freestyle and was the anchor of Marist's first place 400-yard freestyle relay team that clocked in at 3:28.05.

Marist had the most competitors in the 200-yard backstroke, as four Red Foxes competed in the final. Junior Bethany Powhida (Delmar, N.Y.) finished in second place with a time of 2:03.77 followed closely by sophomore Colleen Lampe (East Setauket, N.Y.) in third (2:03.99).

Melanie Bolstad was named 2015 MAAC Men's and Women's Diving Coach of the Year, while junior Renata Diotalevi (Madison, Conn.) was named the conference's Most Outstanding Diver. Bolstad led Marist's trio of women's divers to a 1-2-3 finish on the 1-meter board on Day Two of the 2015 MAAC Championships. In her 26 seasons, she has led Marist's swimming and diving program to 33 conference championships combined and has coached 20 MAAC Divers of the Year.

Diotalevi earned her first career victory on Day Three of the 2015 MAAC Championships after winning the 3-meter dive with a score of 263.80 points.

The Red Foxes will continue their championship season at the Eastern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championships from Feb. 27-March 1 in Pittsburgh, Pa.

Final Team Scores

1. Marist College – 860 points

2. Canisius College – 528 points

3. Rider University – 436.50 points

4. Saint Peter's University – 407 points

5. Siena College – 388 points

6. Iona College – 376 points

7. Fairfield University – 298 points

8. Niagara University – 297 points

9. Manhattan College – 141.50 points

Day Four Final Results:

1,650-Yard Freestyle
1. Karly Haraden – 17:04.70

5. Shannon Gordon – 17:36.65

6. Deirdre Connor – 17:38.20

8. Alexandria Koukos – 17:44.30

12. Melanie Newton – 17:55.63

200-Yard Backstroke

2. Bethany Powhida – 2:03.77

3. Colleen Lampe – 2:03.99

4. Georgia Goldman – 2:05.15

5. Breann Lydon – 2:06.44

100-Yard Freestyle

2. Meredith Wurtz – 51.46 seconds

5. Bridget Curley – 52.80 seconds

16. Kelsey Forster – 54.87 seconds

200-Yard Breaststroke

1. Isabella Morreale – 2:20.49

4. Taylor Deubel – 2:23.52

200-Yard Butterfly

3. Sarah Mosca – 2:09.52

15. Kate Mosca – 2:14.01

16. Anna Grazulis – 2:14.60

400-Yard Freestyle Relay

1. Goldman, Curley, Powhida, Wurtz – 3:28.05

PRELIMINARIES

The Marist women's swimming and diving team continued its dominance in the backstroke events on the final day of preliminaries at the MAAC Championships. Powhida finished in second place with a time of 2:04.51, while freshman Georgia Goldman (Douglaston, N.Y.), Lampe, and sophomore Breann Lydon (Dix Hills, N.Y.) finished within .13 seconds of each other for third, fourth, and fifth, respectively.

Wurtz clocked in at 51.97 seconds for second place in the 100-yard freestyle, while Morreale finished in the same spot in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:23.05).

Day Four Preliminaries Results:

200-Yard Backstroke
2. Bethany Powhida – 2:04.51

3. Georgia Goldman – 2:06.61

4. Colleen Lampe – 2:06.65

5. Breann Lydon – 2:06.74

-- Margaux Purvis – 2:07.48

-- Lindsey Squillante – 2:10.01

100-Yard Freestyle

2. Meredith Wurtz – 51.97 seconds

6. Bridget Curley – 53.21 seconds

16. Kelsey Forster – 55.05 seconds

200-Yard Breaststroke