Women's Swimming Posts Three First-Place Finishes at the Louise Goodrum Invitational
Links: Results
DARTMOUTH, Mass. – The Merrimack College women's swimming team began its 2015-16 season in style, with freshmen Samantha Towle (Chalfont, Pa.) and Maeve McGowan (Mansfield, Mass.) leading the way at the Louise Goodrum Invitational at UMass Dartmouth on Saturday. The team totaled three first-place finishes, while seven members of the team saw action in the season opener.
The Basics
Top Performer: Samantha Towle (1st place | 200 freestyle, 100 IM)
Location: UMass Dartmouth | Dartmouth, Mass.
What They Said
Head Coach Erin Cammann: "We had some good early-season swims. Starting out with an invitational is helpful, as it gave the swimmers a chance to swim more events than they could do in a regular dual meet. It gave me a good sense of where we are in our training.
It was nice to see our freshmen, Samantha Towle and Maeve McGowan, get their first collegiate swim meet under their belts, and they both swam well and are going to be great additions to the Merrimack program. Now we are all looking forward to our first Northeast-10 competition this coming Friday."
How It Happened
Towle led the charge for the Warriors, as she performed admirably in her first collegiate meet. The Chalfont, Pennsylvania, native tallied two first-place finishes on the day, which came in the 200-yard freestyle (2:06.21) and the 100-yard individual medley (1:08.05). She also placed second in the 500-yard freestyle (5:37.80) and the 100-yard freestyle (57.78).
McGowan excelled in her first collegiate meet, as she placed first overall in the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 2:22.38. The Mansfield, Massachusetts, native placed second in the 100-yard individual medley (1:08.81), third in the 100-yard backstroke (1:05.61) and fifth in the 50-yard freestyle (27.04).
Sophomore Alana Appel (Salt Lake City, Utah) tallied a 10th-place finish in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 6:25.16, while placing 12th overall in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 2:23.84. The Salt Lake City, Utah, native recorded times of 1:36.24 in the 100-yard breaststroke and 1:07.94 in the 100-yard freestyle.
Sophomore captain Kendra Van Pelt (Burlington, Iowa) placed 11th overall in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 2:23.76, while finishing 19th overall in the 100-yard freestyle (1:05.86). The Burlington, Iowa, native recorded times of 1:22.40 in the 100-yard individual medley and 29.84 in the 50-yard freestyle.
Sophomore Ireland Wilson (Niantic, Conn.) posted four top-18 finishes in individual events. She finished in seventh overall in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:24.17), 12th in the 100-yard freestyle (1:03.46), 14th in the 50-yard breaststroke (38.44) and 18th in the 50-yard freestyle (29.41).
Junior Sydney Frerichs (Andover, Mass.) placed 13th overall in the 100-yard backstroke (1:16.04). The Andover, Massachusetts, native recorded a time of 1:20.25 in the 100-yard individual medley and a time of 1:10.57 in the 100-yard freestyle.
Sophomore Genesis Garcia (Lawrence, Mass.) competed in three events, while tallying times of 42.51 in the 50-yard butterfly, 1:17.26 in the 100-yard freestyle and 33.62 in the 50-yard freestyle.
The Warriors also showcased their ability as a team, by placing fifth overall in the 200-yard freestyle relay with a time of 1:55.15. The relay team included Towle, McGowan, Wilson and Frerichs.
Up Next
The Warriors will compete against Saint Michael's on Friday at 4 p.m. in Colchester, Vermont.
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