Bucknell University Athletics
Bucknell University
Bucknell Open
Bucknell Women's Swimming and Diving Continues to Hold Onto Second Place at Bucknell Open
12/5/2009 7:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming and Diving
Dec. 5, 2009
***Sunday's finals will now begin at 5 p.m. instead of the originally scheduled 6 p.m.***
LEWISBURG, Pa. - Courtney Warren (Montour Falls, N.Y./Watkins Glen) placed third in the 100-yard backstroke as Bison took three of the top six spots in the event Saturday at Kinney Natatorium, helping the Bucknell women's swimming and diving team hold onto second place following day two of the three-day Bucknell Open.
Bucknell (898 points) is second to Princeton (1,261) in the team standings. Brown (757.5), La Salle (583.5) and Rider (489) round out the top five spots in the seven-team field.
One day after posting just two top-eight finishes in individual swimming events, Bucknell had six swimmers combine for eight top-eight showings on Saturday. The 100 back was the highlight of the day for the Bison as Warren took third in a season-best 56.99 seconds. Fellow seniors Abigail Atkinson (Newtown, Conn./Newtown) and Lauren Russell (Lower Burrell, Pa./Burrell) also posted solid performances, finishing fifth and sixth, respectively. Atkinson's time of 59.02 was a season-best, while Russell's 59.14 was a season best.
In addition to her sixth-place finish in the 100 back, Russell garnered a fourth-place showing in the 400 individual medley. Three other Bison joined her in the top 15.
Another senior, Megan Mongan (Malvern, Pa./Villa Maria Academy), who swam in four events Friday, matched Russell with a fourth-place finish in the 200 freestyle on Saturday. Her time of 1:53.72 was a season-best by more than a second. Atkinson took eighth in the same event, more than three seconds behind.
Freshmen Liz Porcellio (Fairport, N.Y./Penfield) and Morgan Oxley (Emmaus, Pa./Emmaus) had strong showings in the 100 breaststroke. Porcellio placed fifth in 1:06.56, placing her fifth on Bucknell's all-time list. Oxley claimed 11th in 1:07.91, .07 off her season best.
Molly Goebel (New Canaan, Conn./New Canaan), who took second in the 50 free on Friday, added another top-five finish with a fifth-place showing in the 100 fly Saturday. She swam the distance in 58.20. Kaitlyn Sweeney (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park), Laura Twichell (Fayetteville, N.Y./Fayetteville-Manlius) and Alex Psaris (Waterford, Va./The Madeira School) dominated the "B" final, finishing ninth, 11th and 13th.
Bucknell's 200 medley relay quartet of Warren, Oxley, Goebel and Mongan took second to Princeton in 1:45.91, placing them seventh on Bucknell's all-time list.
Scoring for the Bucknell Open is being done through 24 places with each individual event having an "A", "B" and "C" final.
A total of seven events were contested Saturday and Princeton won all seven.
The Bucknell Open will wrap up Sunday. The preliminaries will begin at 10 a.m., while the finals will take place at 5 p.m.
Team Standings (after day two)
1. Princeton - 1,261
2. Bucknell - 898
3. Brown - 757.5
4. La Salle - 583.5
5. Rider - 489
6. Syracuse - 53
7. Columbia - 20
