OAC Swimming Championships- Day Two Prelims- Women

Posted: Feb 17, 2017

AKRON- The Wilmington College women's swimming team competed in the day two preliminary heats of the OAC Swimming Championships Friday morning. The top sixteen times posted in the preliminary heats will swim again in the evening finals. The top eight times will compete in the championship heat, while the bottom eight will compete in the consolation heat.

Friday morning consisted of six events: 200-yard medley relay, 400-yard individual medley, 100-yard butterfly, 200-yard freestyle, 100-yard breaststroke, and 100-yard backstroke. In finals, the 800-yard freestyle relay will also be contested.

The Fightin' Quakers competed in all events, except the 400-yard individual medley. Following the momentum built from yesterday's sessions, all of WC's swims this morning were season bests.

HOW IT HAPPENED

The quartet of senior Kathryn Spitznogle (Waynseville, OH/Waynseville), freshmen Alyssa Rogers (Springfield, OH/Kenton Ridge) and Laura Swinehart (Lancaster, OH/Fairfield Union), and junior Samantha Glish (Louisville, KY/Ballard) opened the meet with the 200-yard medley relay. The group finished the event in 2:03.86, which has the team seeded fifth going into tonight's finals.
Senior Elyse Spraul (Cincinnati, OH/Mount Notre Dame) was the lone Fightin' Quaker to compete in the 100-yard butterfly. Spraul's prelims swim put her just out of contention for tonight's finals. She is currently 17th, the first alternate for the consolation heat, with a time of 1:03.81.
In the 200-yard freestyle, WC will have senior Haley Rowland (Fairborn, OH/Xenia Christian) in the consolation heat. Her time of 2:10.98 in prelims placed her 16th. Sophomore Rachel O'Donnell (Seven Hills, OH/Normandy) was the next top finisher for the Figthin' Quakers in the event. She is tonight's second-alternate, at eighteenth-place, with a time of 2:11.35. Junior Savanna Burcham (Urbana, OH/Urbana) and freshman Samantha Harter (Canton, OH/Glen Oak) also competed for the Fightin' Quakers in the 200-yard freestyle. Their respective times of 2:17.88 and 2:27.33 earned 23rd and 24th.
Rogers was the top finisher for the Fightin' Quakers in the 100-yard breaststroke. Her time of 1:09.48 has her as the top seed for tonight's consolation heat. Glish's time of 1:14.72 (19th) put her just out of contention for tonight's finals. Sophomore Susan Householder (Lancaster, OH/Lancaster), senior Jordynn Wise (Bryan, OH/Bryan), and junior Natalie Thobe (Piqua, OH/Piqua) clocked in at 1:23.60 (21st), 1:26.75 (22nd), and 1:29.32 (23rd), respectively.
Freshman Hannah Houston (Morrow, OH/Wilmington) will swim in the 100-yard backstroke championship heat, tonight. Her preliminary time of 1:01.60 has her seeded fourth going into this evening. In the consolation heat, the Fightin' Quakers will have Spraul, seeded 16th with a time of 1:06.58. Spitznogle is tonight's first alternate, with a time of 1:07.10. Swinehart finished the race in 1:08.82 and earned 19th. Sophomore teammate Ellyse Herr (Edison, OH/Mount Gilead) finished just behind, in 1:09.17, for 20th. Junior Sarah Heitkamp (Portland, IN/Jay County) was the last Fightin' Quaker to touch the wall in the 100-yard backstroke. She finished the four laps in 1:20.22, earning twenty-fifth-place.