(Diana Jurand)
The Lawrence University Swim Team put on a good showing last weekend at the University of Chicago Invitational, with both the men and women taking fifth place out of nine teams in the overall standings. The men and women scored a total of 388 and 271 points respectively after 40 events.
Head Coach Andrew Fleek noted that the team’s performance showed it was “on the right track at this point in the season,” as there were several noteworthy performances from Lawrence swimmers in an invitational meet setting.
Junior Peter Brengel continued his recent streak of excellence, taking second place in the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 1:59.84. Brengel also took third place in the 100-yard backstroke, clocking in at a time of 55.45 seconds.
Ted Chritton, a freshman, took fourth in the 1650-yard freestyle and fifth in the 500-yard freestyle with times of 17:52.96 and 5:02.13 respectively. Freshman Evan Flack and sophomore Caleb Stellmach also had good showings at the meet, with Flack taking fifth place in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:49.92 and nabbing sixth in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 22.46 seconds. Stellmach came in with a time of 18:54.64 in the 1650-yard freestyle for seventh place, putting him alongside Chritton in the long-distance event’s top ten.
On the women’s side, freshman Hannah Gabriel continued to prove herself to be an exceptional young athlete, placing in the top 10 in three different events. Gabriel took sixth place in both the 200-yard and the 500-yard freestyle with times of 2:01.38 and 5:24.15. Gabriel also clocked in a time of 19:11.77 to take eighth place in the 1650-yard freestyle.
The Lawrence swimmers also did well in the relay events, with teams coming in the top 10 in three of the races. In the 200-yard freestyle relay, the men’s “A” team of Peter Brengel, Tom Smith, Charlie Mann and Evan Flack clocked in a time of 1:29.60 to take fifth place, while the “B” team took 10th with a time of 1:33.25.
The Lawrence men also took eighth place in the 400-yard medley relay and seventh place in the 200-yard version of the same event.
The Lawrence women’s “A” team, comprised of Hannah Gabriel, Chelsea Hameister, Kelsey Gray and Julia Heller, took sixth place in the 800-yard freestyle relay after coming in with a final time of 8:32.84. The ladies “A” team also took ninth in the 400-yard freestyle relay with a time of 3:53.37.
Coach Fleek was pleased with the performance of the team in a championship format at this point in the season.
“The meet was an excellent opportunity to face some of the best competition we will see all year,” said Fleek. “The swimmers also benefited from swimming in a championship format meet as we prepare for the Midwest Conference Championships in February.