The University of Redlands swimming & diving teams capped off the 2014 Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Championships with strong results that solidified both squads' third-place finish in the standings. The men recorded 622 points over the course of the three-day event, while the women tallied 607.
For the men, Sunday's competition opened with the 1650 Free, as senior Patrick Wall (St. Louis, MO) took fifth place in 16:36.22.
Junior Jeff Depew (Naperville, IL) uncorked a third-place time of 1:51.97 for an NCAA "B" cut in the 200 Back.
Junior Eric LoPrete (Beaverton, OR) and sophomore Nelson Glendinning (Philadelphia, PA) finished eighth (47.11) and ninth (47.34), respectively, in the 100 Free, while senior Brent Reed (Dublin, CA) won the consolation final in 46.89.
Senior David Ortyn (Bainbridge Island, WA) successfully captured the title in the 200 Fly for the third year in a row, this time going 1:49.53 to out-touch the runner-up by more than one second. Freshman Eric Bugna (Vancouver, WA) also joined him among the finalists, taking seventh with his mark of 1:57.32.
The 400 Free Relay of LoPrete, Reed, Glendinning, and Ortyn uncorked an NCAA "B" time of 3:03.90 to place second in the men's last race of the meet.
The women jumped into Sunday's finals with junior Summer Harp's (San Bernardino, CA) sixth-place effort in the 1650 Free when she touched the wall in 18:00.45.
Junior Haley Thiltgen (San Diego, CA) highlighted the 200 Back for the Maroon and Gray, as she took sixth with a mark of 2:07.49 as the only Bulldog in the final.
In the 100 Free, senior Chandra Lukes (Escondido, CA) headed up a 2-3-5 finish for the Bulldogs, as she posted a time of 52.53. Freshman Ellie Jaques (Covina, CA) joined her on the podium with a third-place mark of 53.05, while sophomore Lauren Robeznieks (Tigard, OR) came in fifth at 53.37.
Redlands was well represented in the women's three-meter diving finals, as a trio of talented Bulldogs scored significant points to contribute to the team's overall tallies. Freshman Jessica Kolsky (Red Wing, MN) headed up this crew, taking fourth with a season-best mark of 379.10. Sophomore Akari Matsumoto (Redmond, WA) and junior Erica Pieramico (Oceanside, CA) complemented her success with their eighth- (298.00) and ninth-place (280.40) finishes, respectively.
The exciting meet came to a close with the women's 400 Free Relay, which saw the Bulldog quarter of Thiltgen, Jaques, Robeznieks, and Lukes touch the wall in second place with a time of 3:31.09 for an NCAA "B" cut.
Now the Bulldogs must await the announcement by the NCAA regarding those whose "B" times become qualifying marks for the NCAA Division III Championships, which begin March 19.