SU Women Finish Second at Landmark Championships; Savard Is Swimmer of the Year
KINGS POINT, N.Y. -- The Susquehanna University women's swimming & diving team finished in second place out of seven teams after Day Three of Three of the 2009-10 Landmark Conference championships at the United States Merchant Marine Academy's Edwin J. O'Hara Hall on Feb. 14.
Susquehanna scored 474 team points to finish 93 points behind the leaders from The University of Scranton, but SU's junior Christie Savard (Berwyn, Pa./Conestoga) claimed the Landmark Swimmer of the Year award. To boot, teammate and freshman Devin Lessard (Chestertown, Md./Queen Anne's County) claimed the conference's Rookie of the Year award, while Head Coach Jerry Foley and Assistant Coach Katie Robbins '96 took Coaching Staff of the Year honors.
The Catholic University of America finished in third place with 333.5 points, while Goucher College's 212 points ranked fourth. The USMMA (198.5), Drew University (149) and Juniata College (55) rounded out the standings.
Savard finished a fantastic championships meet by setting another school and Landmark record. She did that by claiming the conference's individual title in the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 2 minutes, 5.32 seconds. Though she had already provisionally qualified for the 2009-10 NCAA Division III championships in that event earlier this season, her time on this day was good enough as well. That prior time was the previous school record (2:06.04).
Savard also teamed with seniors Hayley Keenan (Pikesville, Md./Liberty HS) and Catherine Harris (Miller Place, N.Y./Miller Place) and Lessard to win the 400 freestyle relay in school- and conference-record fashion. That foursome finished in 3:39.94 to break the old SU record set by themselves earlier this season (3:45.19).
Lessard finished her three-day performance with a school- and Landmark-record time of 2:10.94 in the preliminaries of the 200 butterfly. She turned around and broke those same records again in the finals of the 200 fly, winning the conference title in 2:08.61, good for a provisional qualification for the NCAA championships.
The school record in that event prior to the finals was Lessard's own 2:13.03 from earlier this season.
Harris broke a school and conference record in the prelims of the 100 free with a time of 54.55 seconds. Though her conference record was eventually broken by another competitor, she improved the school record in the finals of that event with a mark of 54.51 seconds.
The school record in the 100 free prior to the finals was her own 56.10 seconds from earlier this season.
Each Landmark individual and relay champion earns a first-team all-conference honor, while second-place finishers earn second-team all-Landmark recognition.
Keenan finished second in the 200 back with a 2:10.84 time.
Next Meet: Saturday, Feb. 20, at Seahawk Invitational [St. Mary's (Md.)], 12 p.m.
