James Madison swimming and diving will be competing in a Colonial Athletic Association pod meet this weekend against four other CAA teams at Old Dominion in Norfolk Va. In addition to the Lady Monarchs, JMU will swim against William and Mary, Drexel, and Northeastern.
The meet kicks off Friday at 6 p.m. with women’s one-meter diving. The meet picks up again with the first set of events on Saturday at 10 a.m., including the 200 freestyle relay, the 200 individual medley, the 50 free, the 1,650 free, and the 200 medley relay. Women’s diving will continue at 1:15 p.m. with the three-meter diving event. The second set of events on Saturday will take place at 5:30 p.m. and encompass the 200 free, the 100 butterfly, the 100 breaststroke, the 100 backstroke, the 400 IM, and the 400 medley relay. The final group of events on Sunday starts at 10 a.m. and includes the 500 free, the 200 back, the 100 free, the 200 breast, the 200 fly, and the 400 free relay.
The Dukes have defeated all three teams they have faced so far this season. JMU won against VMI 254-21 and Georgetown 187.5-112.5 in a double-dual meet in mid October. Last weekend the Dukes emerged victorious from their meet with Radford, beating the Highlanders 173-110. Three JMU divers have already scored qualifying marks for the NCAA Zone meet in March, Jessie Everett in the three-meter, Nicole Jotso in the one- and three-meter dives, and freshman Kimberly Helfrich in the three-meter. Leading swimmers for the Dukes include Lisa Colapietro in the breaststroke, Andrea Cricuolo and Carly Gibson in the butterfly, Morgan McCarthy and Carolina Burns in the backstroke, P.J. Naber in the sprint freestyle, Emily Knieczny and Lauren Kranz in the distance free, as well as Jackie Hartman and Samantha Holland in the medley.
OPPONENTS
William and Mary is 2-1 on the season. The Tribe lost to CAA rival Towson 124.5-173.5 in their first meet of the season. The team rallied to beat Mary Washington 178-77 and Davidson 149-90 in their subsequent two meets. Most notable on the team is Katie Radloff who won six CAA events in the championships last year, all of which were record-setting times, and went on to compete in three events at the NCAA Championships. This year Radloff has already set a record in the 200 medley relay and she is now tied atop the College’s all-time individual victories list with former swimmer, Ruth Miller, with 74 career wins. The last time JMU and William and Mary competed in the previous season on Halloween, JMU suffered a 200-152 loss.
ODU holds a 1-1 record so far this season. The women’s team triumphed over the College of Charleston 185-106 in its first meet of the season. The team lost its only CAA match thus far to UNC Wilmington last weekend 171-121. Freshman swimmer Jessica Hubert has been performing well for the Lady Monarchs with four individual wins to date. Erla Haraldsdotti has claimed victories in four breaststroke events and the 200 IM. Diver Kelsey Thompson won both the one- and three-meter boards. When JMU and ODU met last season, JMU emerged as the victor, beating ODU 191-162.
Drexel enters the meet with a record of 2-2 so far this season. The Dragons lost to Shippensburg 106-93, defeated Widener 193-68, lost to La Salle 167-121, and finally beat Rowan 150-89. Jessica Csakai has been dominating the distance events, winning the 1000 free by more than 37 seconds. Lauren Faykes has also been a high scorer for the Dragons with five wins thus far. Megan Halicek has been keeping a lock on the diving events, taking first place in both the one- and three-meter dives. The last time JMU competed against Drexel, JMU won by a significant margin of 278-69. The Dragons lost CAA 25th Anniversary diver Kate Hynes, who was named CAA Diver of the Year and won both events all four years at Drexel.
Northeastern is undefeated in its three matchups this season. The team defeated both Central Connecticut State (175-108) and Maine (190-102) in its first dual meets of the season. The Huskies went on to win against Boston College 162.5-137.5 the following weekend. This year the team is led by Katherine Fugge and Jill Kearns, who have each earned five and four events respectively. When JMU and Northeastern met last year, the Dukes defeated the Huskies 224-128.
TRAVEL NOTICE
The CAA Pod Meet on Saturday will occur while ODU is also holding homecoming festivities with a home football game. Several parking areas will be restricted for football. Individuals attending swimming and diving can park in Lot 43 (corner of Powhatan and 43rd street) or the 43rd street parking garages (corner of Elkhorn and 43rd street).
There will also be a parade taking place during Saturday’s morning session. Below is the parade route for fans who wish to avoid those areas:
Parade Route:
Parade Starts at 10:00 AM on Elkhorn Avenue. The parade route is as follows:
• START parade on Elkhorn Avenue
• Turn right on to 49th Street
• Follow 49th Street across Hampton Boulevard to Killam Avenue
• Turn right on Killam Avenue and continue on to 47th Street
• Turn right on to 47th Street
• Turn left on Monarch Way
• Follow Monarch Way to 43rd Street
• Turn right on 43rd Street
• Follow 43rd Street across Hampton Boulevard to Elkhorn to disperse
For a parade map, visit: http://www.gmap-pedometer.com/?r=3258911
NOTE: Preview compiled by Jen Methvin, JMU Sports Media Relations practicum student.
Courtesy: JMUSports.com
