Dukes Finish Second at 2017 CAA Championships

Wednesday, February 22

Christiansburg, Va.

All Day

James Madison University

CAA Championships

2/25/2017 10:44:00 PM | Swimming & Diving

@JMUSwimDive 2016-17 Schedule/Results Full Championship Results Highlights

CHRISTIANSBURG, Va. – James Madison swimming and diving sent five competitors to championship finals, but were unable to hold off William & Mary to finish second at the 2017 Colonial Athletic Association Swimming and Diving Championships Saturday at the Christiansburg Aquatics Center.

The Dukes closed the championships with 700.5 total points, falling to the Tribe over the final day of competition as William & Mary finished with 749.5 points. Katie Parker led the Dukes tying for the fourth-most points over the meet with 47. Bonnie Zhang added 46 points for the Dukes over the championships to tie for the sixth most over the competition.

Three Dukes took home major awards at the conclusion of competition as Head Coach Dane Pedersen was named Co-Coach of the Year, Diving Coach John Wolsh was named Diving Coach of the Year and Olivia Lehman was named Most Outstanding Diver of the Meet after her sweep of the 1 and 3-meter events.

The Dukes opened the final day of competition with a sixth-place finish in the 1650 freestyle by Claire Adkins with a time of 17:05.80. Abby Ortman followed with a fifth-place finish in the 200 backstroke with a time of 1:59.89, the fourth-fastest time in program history.

Zhang continued her impressive championship debut with a third-place finish in the 100 freestyle with a time of 50.36. Breeger finished eighth in the championship final with a time of 51.96. Parker just missed a podium finish in the 200 breaststroke, placing fifth in the finals with a time of 2:19.15.

The Dukes closed the championships with a second-place finish in the 400 freestyle as Zhang, Kristie Darmody, Jillian Breeger and Shannon Harper touched with a time of 3:24.25.

QUOTING COACH PEDERSEN
"I'm very proud of what our girls did. We went through a lot of adversity in the weeks leading up to this. Every team has its challenges, but knowing what we had to go through to get here, I was really proud of the way that they stepped up, supported each other and stayed true to who they were."

TWEET OF THE MEET

At the beginning of this year I'd never gone to a swim meet before and now I'm sad the season is over. Congrats on 2nd @JMUSwimDive!! ????
— Samantha Seaton (@Samantha_Seaton) February 26, 2017

OTHER TOP RESULTS
1650 Freestyle
11th – Kelly Long – 17:41.36

200 Backstroke
11th – Logan Haddock – 2:01.78
14th – Courtney Clarke – 2:02.92
15th – Emma Gourdie – 2:03.11

100 Freestyle
12th – Shannon Harper – 51.49
13th – Kristie Darmody – 51.56
16th – Mackenzie Gring – 52.48

200 Breaststroke
10th – Megan Marsh – 2:18.13
14th - Jessica Pierce – 2:20.69
15th – Maddy Murphy – 2:23.41

200 Butterfly
12th – Hannah Lagod – 2:05.84
13th – Maddie Massey – 2:05.99

UP NEXT
The James Madison divers will compete at the 2017 NCAA ZONE A Diving Championships over Monday, March 6 and Tuesday, March 7. The competition will be held in Christiansburg, Va. at the Christiansburg Aquatics Center.