Oct. 13, 2012

Complete Results

DAYTON, Ohio - The UIC men's and women's swimming & diving teams opened the 2012-13 season with a pair of wins against Wright State on Saturday. With dominant performances from the freshmen class, the men and women came away with matching finals of 176-122.

The men's squad (1-0, 1-0 HL) came in first in 10 events, while newcomers Rodolfo Zuniga, Kei Ishimaru, Mike Reed, Christian Grobe and Ramiro Almaraz all claimed first-place rankings, in addition to Brian Sivak, Joel Demuth, Woody Lord and Mike Greco.

Zuniga came in first in the 1000 free with a 9:48.45 final, while taking second in the 500 with 4:46.16. Ishimaru took the best times in two events, with 1:55.24 in the 200 fly and 52.61 in the 100 fly, as Sean Mayfield placed second with 53.57.

In the 50 free, Reed pulled away for first with 21.89, as Vince Errichiello came in second at 22.46. Grobe broke away in the 200 breast, coming in at 2:08.84, with Almaraz finishing out the 200 IM at 1:58.58.

Brian Sivak was able to take first in the 100 back at 53.53 and second in the 200 at 1:57.34, while Demuth went into the 100 free and came away at 47.61.

In the 1-mtr dive, the Flames went one, two, three, as Lord (317.40), Greco (278.78) and Connor Howard (214.05) produced top scores, and did the same in the 3-mtr with Greco in first (285.00), Lord in second (279.30) and Howard in third (220.20).

The team of Demuth, Errichiello, Sivak and Reed were able to capture claim first in the 200 free relay with a 1:25.25 final, after Sivak, Conor Ozog, Errichiello and Demuth took second in the 200 medley relay with 1:37.82.

Of the 16 events, the women's squad (1-0, 1-0 HL) captured the best times in 13. Finishing with strong times in the relay events, newcomer Veronica Gibson, Melanie Waszak, Anne Jacobson, Andrea Longlade, Monica Pinkus, Whitney Johnson and Kelsey Millin led the team with individual wins.

In her first meet of her collegiate career, Gibson held her own in the 1000 free to come away with a first-place finish at 10:39.49 and took the 200 fly with a 2:13.36 final, while placing second in the 500 free after swimming a 5:13.53.

Waszak came into the 200 free with a final of 1:56.71 and a top time of 58.26 in the 100 fly, as Jacobsen claimed first in the 100 back (59.76) and second in the 200 (2:12.22).

Longlade took two first-place finishes with 1:09.00 and 2:28.49 in the 100 and 200 breast, respectively. Pinkus also came away with two after competing in the 50 free (24.90) and 100 free (54.37), with Emily Gniatczyk close behind at 54.94. Johnson captured the 1--mtr dive after posting a 226.13, while Millin rounded out the field with a 2:13.40 final in the 200 IM.

The women's squad held first and second place in the 200 medley relay, as the team of Jacobson, Pinkus, Waszak and Gniatczyk took first with 1:49.03 and Katherine Hare, Longlade, Danel Voorhees and Devon O'Neil came in at second with 1:52.02, with Gniatczyk, Pinkus, Hare and Waszak combining for 1:40.17 in the 200 free relay.

The Flames return to the pool on Saturday, Oct. 27, when they host their home opener against Eastern Illinois at 1 p.m. (CT) at the Flames Natatorium.