Katie Radloff Wins 50 Free with NCAA Automatic Performance

400 Medley Relay Takes Bronze

02/28/08 10:57PM

FAIRFAX, VA - William and Mary sophomore Katie Radloff (Arlington, Va.) won her seventh CAA title Thursday evening with a conference-record performance in the 50 freestyle to highlight the evening’s action at the CAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships. Towson leads the team race, 268-200 over George Mason, while the Tribe made a strong move up the standings throughout the day to stand third with 182 points at the meet’s half-way point.

Complete Thursday Results

Radloff timed 22.61 seconds in winning the 50 free, shattering the school record of 22.92 she swam at Maryland in November. Her time also broke the pool, championship meet, and conference record of 22.75 set by Towson’s Jen Irby in 2005, and was one-hundredth of a second under the NCAA automatic-qualifying standard. Also in the championship heat of the 50, freshman Emily Burns (Snellville, Ga.) timed 23.62 seconds for fifth. In the consolation heat, senior captain Meredith David (Somerdale, N.J.) took second (10th overall) with a personal-record time of 24.41 seconds, making her the 11th-fastest swimmer in school history.

In the 500 free, junior Marina Falcone (Potomac, Md.) finished fourth in 4:54.08, only one-hundredth of a second away from medaling. In the consolation heat, sophomore Lindsay Guers (Orwigsburg, Pa.) took fourth (12th overall) with a personal-record time of 4:58.68, joining Falcone as the only two swimmers in school history to break five minutes. Senior Christina Monsees (Brewster, N.Y.) finished 16th overall with the exact-same time she swam in prelims, 5:04.09.

Sophomore Courtney Alles (Manassas Park, Va.) took eighth in the finals of the 200 IM, touching the wall in 2:09.65. Classmate Suzanne Figuers (Cary, N.C.), competing in the consolation finals, took 13th overall with a personal-best 2:07.76. Junior Whitney Pezza (Warrenton, Va.) was 14th in 2:08.36, and sophomore Laura Herrmann (Fairfax Station, Va.) was 16th in 2:10.78.

The evening was capped by the 400 medley relay of David, Figuers, Erin Welshofer (Charlotte, N.C.), and Radloff, who chased down UNC Wilmington’s team over the final few lengths to finish third with a time of 3:49.10, the third-best time in school history. With the all-conference showing, David will graduate in May having medaled in the 400 medley relay every year of her career.

The Championships continue tomorrow with preliminaries starting at 10 a.m.

CAA Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships
1. Towson 268
2. George Mason 200
3. WILLIAM AND MARY 182
4. UNC Wilmington 157
5. James Madison 119
6. Northeastern 134
7. Delaware 121
8. Drexel 103
9. Old Dominion 80