Results
Reading, PA —Messiah participated in its first tri-meet of the 2010-2011 season Saturday afternoon, taking on Middle Atlantic Conference rival Albright College and non-conference opponent Washington & Jefferson College at Albright College Natatorium.
Despite an all-around strong effort, the Falcons came up empty with the men (2-3) falling to Washington and Jefferson 100-22 and Albright (5-2-1) 101-21. Messiah's women (1-4) were overpowered by both Washington & Jefferson 108-14 and Albright (5-3) 97-24.
“This was the first time we did a long format meet,” said Messiah head coach Nancy Luley. “We did alright.”
The Falcons started things off with fourth- and fifth-place finishes in the women's 200-yard medley relay, while sophomore Spenser Warren, freshman Daniel Wingert, sophomore Tim Alarcon and junior Zachary McArdle captured third in the men's version with a time of 1:43.81.
McArdle was the lone event winner of the day for Messiah. Leading the pack in the 200-yard breaststroke, McArdle touched the wall at 2:24.67, while sophomore Malcolm McDermond's time of 2:36.27 was good enough for fifth.
Freshman Daniel Wingert had a good showing in the 100-yard breaststroke finishing second (1:06.61), slightly behind the winning time (1:03.43) of Albright junior Joe Deighan.
Although the Falcons were unable to amass a significant amount of points throughout the meet, they put up quality times in hitting two additional MAC qualifying standards on the season. To date, the Messiah women have earned a dozen MAC qualifiers, while the men aren't far behind with 10.
“It's not bad at this point in the season,” Luley said. “They can relax and not be stressed about their times.”
Freshman Cassie Forman reached her MAC qualifying time as an exhibition participant in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 1:00.29. On the men's side, freshman Evan Jewell qualified for post-season competition in the 200-yard backstroke at 2:25.18.
“We put up a good fight against two strong teams,” Luley said. “Now, we practice and prepare for our next meet at Dickinson.”
Swimming returns to action on Tuesday, Dec. 7. Originally scheduled as a home meet, Messiah will 'host' the Red Devils at the Dickinson College Kline Center due to ongoing repairs to Fredricksen Natatorium. Meet time is slated for 7 p.m.
