Potsdam Men Win 167-121, Women Fall in Meet vs. St. Michael's

December 3: St. Lawrence University's women's team posted its best finish in the program's Liberty League history with a third and the men's team placed sixth  at the 2011 Liberty League Swimming and Diving Championships at Rensselaer on Saturday. For the men, Andrew Hayes added seventh place finish in the 200 free in 1:48.19 and Jason Dutra was eighth in the 100 fly in 54.42. Dutra added a tenth place finish in the 100 back in 55.61 and Alex Root was ninth in the 1650 in 17:35.32. Hagen added a fourth place finish in the 200 back in the evening session while Moffitt placed fifth in 54.82 in the 100 free, Canne was sixth and Smith eighth in the 200 breaststroke, Weidhausser was eighth in the 200 fly and Chastity Barcomb was seventh in the three meter diving with a score of 324.40. The Saints 400 free relay team of Hagen, Natalie Dellinger, Canne and Abribat was sixth in 3:50.10. For the men, Hayes was fifth in 2:00.75 and Dutra sixth in the 200 back for the Saint top ten finishes in the second Saturday session. The Saint 400 free relay team of Root, Newton, Kirby Kaylor and Dutra finished eighth.

November 5: The St. Lawrence University swimming and diving team earned a split with visiting RIT on Saturday afternoon in the Augsbury Natatorium.  The men fell by the score of 167-75.  The Saints will be back in action at the Liberty League Championships on December 2nd and 3rd, hosted by Rensselaer.   Senior co-captain Russ Newton led the men's team with three individual victories.  The East Lyme, CT native won the 500-free (5:05.96), 1,000-free (10:23.96) and the 200-IM (2:08.95).  First-year student Kirby Kaylor placed second in the 200-IM with a time of 2:09.83.     Andrew Hayes, also a senior co-captain, earned a first-place finish in the 200-back (2:05.86), and a narrow second-place finish in the 200-free (1:50.85).  RIT's Kevin Christiansen took first in the 200-free with a time of 1:50.15.

Diving in, competitors from Monroe Community College, Clarkson University and SUNY Potsdam launch a heat during the 2011 North Country Invitational at SUNY Potsdam.  Oneonta claimed first place, Clarkson second.  (Bob LaRue photo)  Meet Gallery

Swimmer is backlighted by sunshine through skylight during a freestyle heat at North Country Invitational.  (Nate Maser photo)

December 3: Senior Mike Rowe (Glenville, NY) raced to a third-place finish in the 200 backstroke in 1:57.78 to highlight the Clarkson University Swim team's performance at the Liberty League Championships this weekend on the campus of Rensselaer. Rowe was the top performer for the Knights all weekend long. Including his third place finish in the 200 backstroke, the senior finished in the top 12 in three events overall. He came in eighth in the 100 backstroke in 55.09, and also took 11th place in the 200 individual medley in 2:03.25. He also took 14th in the 200 freestyle to gain points for the Golden Knights. Also picking up points in the indivudal events was Aaron Kreher (Clarence, NY), who came in 14th in the 200 butterfly. Just missing out on gaining points for Clarkson was freshman Tyler Nichols (Spencerport, NY), who took 17th in the 400 individual medley in 4:39.51, junior Sean Parnett (Clifton Park, NY), who came in 19th in the 1650 freestyle in 18:51.07, and freshman Nate Menapace (Baldwinsville, NY), who trailed Kreher in the 200 butterfly by three places in 17th overall.

November 19: Four swimmers finished in the top five in three separate individual events as the Clarkson University Swim team completed the annual North Country Invitational with a second-place finish for the men Saturday afternoon at Maxcy Hall. The Golden Knights’ men came in second behind Oneonta (642) with 386 points while leading Potsdam (381) and Monroe Community College (303). Clarkson closes out the first semester’s schedule in early December when it will compete in the Liberty League Championships. Mike Rowe (Glenville, NY) was the lone event winner on the weekend, taking first in the 100 backstroke (55.84) on Saturday. Rowe also came in second in the 200 backstroke (1:59.63) and 400 individual medley (4:30.77). Joining Rowe as top standouts were junior Sean Parnett (Clifton Park, NY) and freshman Tyler Nichols (Spencerport, NY). Parnett was fourth in the 500 freestyle (5:08.63) on Friday, and on Saturday was third in the 1650 freestyle (18:14.64) and fourth in the 100 butterfly (2:07.91). Nichols was just behind Rowe in a pair of events, taking fourth in the 200 backstroke (2:08.48) and 400 individual medley (4:37.71) while also finishing fourth in the 200 individual medley (2:10.23). Junior Paul Telesca (Liverpool, NY) was Clarkson’s leader in the sprint freestyle events, coming in second in the 50 freestyle (23.04) on Friday and fourth in the 100 freestyle (51.51) on Saturday. Freshman Nick Hens (Liverpool, NY) came in fifth in the 1650 freestyle (19:33.74), classmate Ray Bailey (Galway, NY) was fourth in the 200 freestyle (1:56.14), and Stephen Maxwell (Latham, NY) placed third in the 100 backstroke (58.92) to round out the Knights’ top performers on the weekend.

Two swimmers are stroke-for-stroke in the men's freestyle event at North Country Invitational.  (Maser photo)  Meet Gallery

November 19: The SUNY Potsdam swimming and diving teams hosted Oneonta State, Monroe Community College, and Clarkson University at the North Country Invitational on Nov. 18-19. The Oneonta men and women captured both competitions, while the Bears women finished second and the men third. Junior Alexander Taylor (Port Ewen, N.Y./Kingston) led the Potsdam men again with three wins in individual events. Taylor won the 200 individual medley in 1:59.81, the 100 breaststroke in 1:01.30, and the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:16.30. Sophomore Laurissa Coombs (Port Jefferson, N.Y./Ward Melville) swam a time of 4:58.76 to win the 400 individual medley. Junior Liz Ringer (Queensbury, N.Y./Queensbury) was victorious in the 200 butterfly with a time of 2:22.13. The Bears are back in the pool on Dec. 2-4, when they travel to Fredonia for the Fredonia Invitational.

November 12: The College at Brockport downed the SUNY Potsdam swimming and diving teams in their first home meet on Saturday afternoon. The Golden Eagles won the men’s competition 166-127. Junior Alexander Taylor, senior Ryan Wentz, and sophomore Richie Zimmerman each won three events. The trio was on the winning 400 medley relay team with junior Marcus Domfort that posted a time of 3:45.08. Taylor also won the 100 breaststroke in 1:01.16 and the 500 freestyle in 5:12.29. Wentz won the 200 and 100 butterfly events in 2:06.29 and 0.54.91, respectively. Zimmerman was the fastest in the 200 breaststroke (2:20.18) and the 200 individual medley (2:06.41). Domfort also won the 200 backstroke in 2:08.61. The Bears are back in the pool next weekend, Nov. 18-19, when they host the North Country Invitational.

November 5: The SUNY Potsdam swimming and diving teams won their first dual meet of the season at Norwich University on Saturday afternoon. The men downed the Cadets 147-132 and the women won a 147-72 decision. The Bears won 21 of the meets 32 events. The reigning SUNYAC Swimmer of the Week, junior Alexander Taylor (Port Ewen, N.Y./Kingston), was in top form again with wins in four events. Taylor was part of the winning 400 medley relay team (3:47.12) and won the 200 freestyle (1:50.96), 200 breaststroke (2:18.09), and the 200 individual medley (2:03.43). Senior Ryan Wentz (Pendleton, N.Y./Starpoint) and sophomore Richie Zimmerman (Victor, N.Y./Victor) were each three-time winners, including the 400 medley relay. Wentz won the 200 and 100 butterfly competitions with times of 2:06.91 and 00:54.94, respectively. Zimmerman captured the 200 backstroke (2:06.89) and 100 breaststroke (1:02.9). Sophomore Jeff Scarano (Kinderhook, N.Y./Ichabod Crane) won both 1-meter diving events with scores of 84.06 and 87. The Bears return home on Saturday, Nov. 12, for a 2:30 p.m. dual meet with Brockport. 

December 3: St. Lawrence University's women's team posted its best finish in the program's Liberty League history with a third and the men's team placed sixth  at the 2011 Liberty League Swimming and Diving Championships at Rensselaer on Saturday. The Saint women had a 56 point lead on fourth place Union heading into Saturday's final six events, and opened it up to nearly 100 points going into the final event of the meet with top tens in each of the first five events of the final session. The Saints previous best team finish was a fourth last year. Rochester won both men's and women's titles. The Yellowjackets had 1115.5 points in the women's meet with RPI second with 629.5, the Saints third with 465 and Union fourth with 371 in an eight-team field. Casey Abribat had a big Saturday, improving her own record with a second place finish in the 200 backstroke in 2:11.38, she was fourth in the early session Saturday in the 400 IM in 4:46.49 and she was a member of the 200 medley relay team which was third in 1:54.32. She was joined by Elizabeth Canne, Katharina Weidhausser and Samantha Moffitt on the medley relay. Russell Newton had a fourth in the 400 individual medley and came back for a third in the 1650 free later in the early session on Saturday to help the Saint men to a sixth place standing heading into the final session. In Saturday's early session, the Saint women scored well in the 100 fly with three swimmers finishing in the top ten. Moffitt had the top finish in the 100 fly with a fifth in 1:00.66 while Natalie Dellinger was sixth in 1:01.07 and Weidhausser was eighth in 1:01.12. All three swimmers turned in their best time of the year thus far in the event. Weidhausser also had a top ten finish in the 200 free with a ninth place finish in 2:03.36. Canne was fourth in 1:10.37 and Zinnia Smith was ninth in 1:12.83 in the 100 breaststroke while Brynne Hagen was fourth in 1:01.99 and Molly Sneden ninth in 1:04.68 in the 100 backstroke. Molly Lunn added an eighth place in the 1650. Newton's third in 17:01.69 in the 1650 and fourth place finish in the 400 IM with a time of 4:23.60 were the highlights of the morning session.

November 5:  The St. Lawrence University swimming and diving team earned a split with visiting RIT on Saturday afternoon in the Augsbury Natatorium.  The women's team handily defeated the Tigers 140-99.  The Saints will be back in action at the Liberty League Championships on December 2nd and 3rd, hosted by Rensselaer.   Sophomore Katharina Weidhausser and first-year student Samantha Moffitt led the way for the Saints, posting two individual victories each and swimming on the winning 200 medley relay team.  Also earning top times were sophomore Elizabeth Canne, junior Casey Abribat and senior Molly Lunn.  Weidhausser won the 200-free (2:02.72) and the 500-free (5:37.20), while Moffitt took the 50-free (25.75) and the 100-free (56.06). Canne took the 200-breast in 2:37.25, with first-year Courtney Goodrich placing second with a time of 2:48.13.  Abribat won the 200-IM in 2:19.68, while senior Brynn Hagen and Goodrich rounded out the top three in the event.  Abribat just missed the top spot in the 200-back as she touched in 2:18.82.  RIT's Colleen Manning won the event with a time of 2:18.81.  Lunn earned a victory in the 1,000-free as she tapped in at 11:30.30, ahead of RIT's Caitlin Foster who finished in 11:30.35.     The relay team of Hagen, Canne, Weidhausser and Moffitt posted a first-place finish in the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:57.89.  

A SUNY Potsdam swimmer in the butterfly event during a heat at North Country Invitational.  (Bob LaRue photo)  Meet Gallery

November 19: The SUNY Potsdam swimming and diving teams hosted Oneonta State, Monroe Community College, and Clarkson University at the North Country Invitational on Nov. 18-19. The Oneonta men and women captured both competitions, while the Bears women finished second and the men third. Junior Alexander Taylor (Port Ewen, N.Y./Kingston) led the Potsdam men again with three wins in individual events. Taylor won the 200 individual medley in 1:59.81, the 100 breaststroke in 1:01.30, and the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:16.30. Sophomore Laurissa Coombs (Port Jefferson, N.Y./Ward Melville) swam a time of 4:58.76 to win the 400 individual medley. Junior Liz Ringer (Queensbury, N.Y./Queensbury) was victorious in the 200 butterfly with a time of 2:22.13. The Bears are back in the pool on Dec. 2-4, when they travel to Fredonia for the Fredonia Invitational.

November 12: The College at Brockport downed the SUNY Potsdam swimming and diving teams in their first home meet on Saturday afternoon. The Golden Eagles won women’s 178-109. Junior Liz Ringer won three individual events to lead the women. Ringer captured the 200 butterfly in 2:24.76, the 100 butterfly in 1:03.86, and the 200 individual medley in 2:21.26. Junior Paige Montroy won the 100 breaststroke in 1:08.48 and sophomore Laurissa Coombs was the best in the 500 freestyle with a time of 5:37.81. The Bears are back in the pool next weekend, Nov. 18-19, when they host the North Country Invitational.

November 5: The SUNY Potsdam swimming and diving teams won their first dual meet of the season at Norwich University on Saturday afternoon. Potsdam’s women had four triple winners. Sophomore Laurissa Coombs (Port Jefferson, N.Y./Ward Melville), sophomore Ghena Binzer (Baldwinsville, N.Y./C.W. Baker), junior Liz Ringer (Queensbury, N.Y./Queensbury), and junior Paige Montroy (Cape Vincent, N.Y./Thousand Islands) were each members of the victorious 400 medley relay team (4:27.22). Coombs won the 200 freestyle (2:10) and the 200 individual medley (2:33.02). Binzer finished first in the 100 and 200 breaststroke events with times of 1:14.66 and 2:43.58. Ringer won the 100 free (00:58.45) and 200 butterfly (2:27.03). Montroy rounded out the leaders with victories in the 100 freestyle (1:09.2) and 200 backstroke (2:31.06). The Bears return home on Saturday, Nov. 12, for a 2:30 p.m. dual meet with Brockport. 

Swimmers from SUNY Potsdam, Monroe Community College and Clarkson University begin a heat during the second day at the North Country Invitational.  (Bob LaRue photo)  Meet Gallery

December 3: In the 2011 Liberty League Championships host by Rensselaer in Troy, none of the Clarkson individual registered points in the meet, but several came quite close. Junior Jillian Brown (Kenmore, NY) came in 19th place in the 50 freestyle in 26.52 seconds on the meet's first day. Freshman Kelly Ludeke (Burnt Hills, NY) finished 19th in the 100 breaststroke in 1:16.41 and bettered that placement by two in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:45.08. Junior Colleen Daly (Manlius, NY) also came in 19th in the 1650 freestyle in 20:15.98.  Clarkson finished last in the nine-team event.

November 19: Four swimmers finished in the top five in three separate individual events as the Clarkson University Swim team completed the annual North Country Invitational with a fourth-place showing for the women Saturday afternoon at Maxcy Hall. The Golden Knights’ women were fourth with 301.5 points, trailing Oneonta (732), Potsdam (374) and MCC (315.5). Clarkson closes out the first semester’s schedule in early December when it will compete in the Liberty League Championships. Though the women came in fourth among the four teams at the event, several swimmers had outstanding weekends. Freshman Kelly Ludeke (Burnt Hills, NY) placed second in the 50 freestyle (26.70) and added a third-place finish in the 100 breaststroke (1:14.33) on the first day and then added a fourth-place showing in the 200 breaststroke (2:45.75) on Saturday to lead the Golden Knights. Junior Jillian Brown (Kenmore, NY) finished just behind Ludeke in the 50 freestyle on Friday with a time of 26.73 and then came in second in the 100 freestyle on Saturday (58.47). Senior Emma Bonan (Queensbury, NY) also had a pair of top-five finishes for Clarkson, coming in fifth in the 100 freestyle (59.71) and 200 freestyle (2:10.08). Other top individuals for the women were Colleen Daly (Manlius, NY), who came in fifth in the 1650 freestyle (20:05.89) on Friday, and Caitlin Joyce (Walden, NY), who took third in the 100 backstroke (1:09.41) on Saturday.

November 12: Clarkson University Swim team split a dual meet against St. Michael's Saturday afternoon. The Golden Knights' women dropped a 155-106 decision to St. Michael's. Clarkson will participate in the North Country Invitational next weekend at SUNY Potsdam on Friday and Saturday during the Golden Knights' annual alumni weekend. Colleen Daly (Manlius, NY) won the 1000 freestyle in 2:13.24 and Emma Bonan (Queensbury, NY) won the other distance event, the 500 freestyle, in 5:56.85. Jillian Brown (Kenmore, NY) claimed first in the 100 butterfly with a time of 1:07.75.