NEW HAVEN, Conn. (Feb. 13, 2010) – Freshman Erin Bieger (Columbus, Ind./Columbus North) (Columbus, Ind. / Columbus North) captured her third overall title in the 200-yard breaststroke and the 400-yard freestyle relay team put the exclamation mark on Saint Francis University's dominating performance in the pool to earn its first-ever Northeast Conference Swimming and Diving Championship, wrapping up three days of competition on Saturday on the campus of Yale University.
Additionally, SFU head coach Pat Gallagher was named the Northeast Conference Swimming Coach-of-the-Year after leading his team to a championship-best 556.5 points. Two-time defending champion Central Connecticut State finished second with 508 points, while Wagner took third (318), Bryant finished fourth (276), Sacred Heart earned fifth (217), Mount St. Mary's took sixth (106) and St. Francis-NY placed seventh (89).
The Red Flash, who were selected in a preseason coaches' poll to finish third, had not won any individual titles since Mary Roth won the 200-yard individual medley in an NEC record time of 2:09.43 in 2001. However, Gallagher's team won a total of seven gold medals during this year's three-day event and won four of the five relays that were contested. Saint Francis had never won a conference relay title before this season.
“That was the most fun that I have ever had at a swim meet, as an athlete or as a coach,” said Gallagher, who is in his seventh year at Saint Francis. “We just had some unbelievable performances. This championship means a lot because the conference is getting a lot stronger and from where we have come from. There have been so many people who have contributed to this - the alumni, Mr. (Bob) Krimmel (Saint Francis' Director of Athletics) and, most importantly, a great senior class. I think that the coach of the year award is a little misleading because Lori Leitzinger did such a great job with this team over her two years, and Katie Snyder (Dayton, Ohio/Butler) has helped us tremendously as a volunteer coach.”
Despite not having a team of divers, Saint Francis used a total team effort to overwhelm two-time defending champion Central Connecticut State. SFU's previous best finish at the Northeast Conference championships was second-place in 2008.
The 400-yard freestyle relay team of senior Elise Merrill (Carlisle, Pa./Big Spring) (Carlisle, Pa. / Big Spring), junior Melissa Heintz (Boyertown, Pa./Oley Valley) (Boyertown, Pa. / Oley Valley), junior Hanna Yttring (Gothenburg, Sweden/Katrinelundsgymnasiet) (Gothenburg, Sweden / Katrinelundsgymnasiet) and freshman Alicia Ford (Whitney Point, N.Y/Whitney Point) (Whitney Point, N.Y. / Whitney Point) won with a time of 3 minutes, 28.71 seconds.
Freshman Kathleen Lyon (King George, Va./King George) (King George, Va. / King George) got Saturday's finals action started off on a positive note by finishing second in the 1,650-yard freestyle with a time of 17:18.66. She earned 13 teams points with the finish, and had some help from her teammates. Sophomore Bethany Lanzendoen (River Edge, N.J./River Dell) (River Edge, N.J. / River Dell) earned nine team points by taking sixth (17:51.16), and senior McKenzie Madore (State College, Pa./State College Area) (State College, Pa. / State College) earned three points by taking 10th in 18:35.52.
Sophomore Jessica Dunn (Bristow, Va./Seton School) (Bristow, Va. / Seton School) narrowly missed out on her first career Northeast Conference title when she got inched out in the 200-yard backstroke. However, she earned a valuable 13 team points by taking second-place in 2:04.94, just behind Central Connecticut State's Alex Czaplicki's 2:04.38. Freshman Maddie Madore (State College, Pa. / State College) also scored in the event, bringing home four team points with a ninth-place finish (2:16.28).
SFU's impressive team performance in the 100-yard freestyle was key to the eventual outcome, and put the team back in first-place after 15 of the 20 events. The Red Flash scored 51 of the possible 93 points with six different swimmers finishing in the Top-12. Ford finished second (52.57), Yttring took third (52.66), Merrill captured fourth (52.82), and Heintz finished fifth (54.00). In the “B” final, senior Blair Kosela (Crescent, Pa./Moon Area) (Crescent, Pa. / Moon Area) finished ninth (54.70) and freshman Kim Davis (Greensburg, Pa./Greensburg-Salem) (Greensburg, Pa. / Greensburg-Salem) took 12th (55.43).
Next up was the 200-yard breaststroke, where Saint Francis had two swimmers in each of the “A” and “B” finals. Bieger and senior Kristen Low (Mississauga,Ontario/Cawthra Park SS) (Mississauga, Ontario / Cawthra Park SS) finished first and second, respectively, and sophomore Chloe Pierre (Valencia, Pa/Mars) (Valencia, Pa. / Mars) and senior Elyse Peterman (Lock Haven, Pa. / Central Mountain) finished seventh and ninth, respectively, to put the Red Flash in position to secure the school's first-ever Northeast Conference Swimming and Diving Championship. Bieger won the title with a time of 2:23.90, while Low took second in 2:26.75. Pierre touched the wall in 2:30.17, and Peterman touched in 2:31.40.
The Red Flash officially clinched the team title, in the second-to-last event, with their performance in the 200-yard butterfly, where Lyon was the team's top finisher in fourth place (2:10.63). Lanzendoen took sixth in 2:13.08, senior Abigale May (Pittsburgh, Pa./Shaler) (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Shaler) placed eighth in 2:10.57, and junior Elyse Dobrick (Greensburg, Pa/Greensburg-Salem) (Zelienople, Pa. / Seneca Valley) finished ninth in 2:11.44.
Bieger won three overall titles at the championships, including two individual titles and one relay. Yttring captured five overall titles – one individual and four relays.
2010 NEC Saint Francis University Swimming and Diving Individual Champions
200 FR: SFU (Elise Merrill (Carlisle, Pa./Big Spring), Hanna Yttring (Gothenburg, Sweden/Katrinelundsgymnasiet), Melissa Heintz (Boyertown, Pa./Oley Valley), Alicia Ford (Whitney Point, N.Y/Whitney Point)) 1:35.28
200 IM: Hanna Yttring (Gothenburg, Sweden/Katrinelundsgymnasiet), SFU 2:05.96
400 MR: SFU (Elise Merrill (Carlisle, Pa./Big Spring), Erin Bieger (Columbus, Ind./Columbus North), Hanna Yttring (Gothenburg, Sweden/Katrinelundsgymnasiet), Alicia Ford (Whitney Point, N.Y/Whitney Point)) 3:51.30
200 MR: SFU (Elise Merrill (Carlisle, Pa./Big Spring), Elyse Peterman, Hanna Yttring (Gothenburg, Sweden/Katrinelundsgymnasiet), Alicia Ford (Whitney Point, N.Y/Whitney Point)) 1:45.71
100 Breast: Erin Bieger (Columbus, Ind./Columbus North), SFU 1:06.37
200 Breast: Erin Bieger (Columbus, Ind./Columbus North), SFU 2:23.90
400 FR: SFU (Elise Merrill (Carlisle, Pa./Big Spring), Melissa Heintz (Boyertown, Pa./Oley Valley), Hanna Yttring (Gothenburg, Sweden/Katrinelundsgymnasiet), Alicia Ford (Whitney Point, N.Y/Whitney Point)) 3:28.71
