2019 NCAA Division II Women’s Championships – Day 3 Finals Live Recap

2019 NCAA Division II Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships

• Dates: Wednesday, March 13 – Saturday, March 16, 2019
• Swimming: prelims 10am, finals 6pm; Diving: 2pm
• Location: IU Natatorium, Indianapolis, Indiana (Eastern Time Zone)
• Defending Champions: Queens (4x) (results)
• Digital Program
• Official Psych Sheet
• Event Schedule
• Live Video
• Live Results │ Diving Results
• Championship Central

Day Three

Women’s 500 Yard Freestyle – Finals

• NCAA DII: 4:39.28 3/11/2016 Patri Castro Ortega, Queens (NC)
• Meet: 4:39.28 3/11/2016 Patri Castro Ortega, Queens (NC)

Podium:

1. Georgia Wright, West Chester – 4:48.33
2. Emma Sundstedt, Nova S’eastern – 4:48.46
3. Caroline Jouisse, Delta State – 4:51.49
4. Francesca Bains, Queens (NC) – 4:51.67
5. Erica Dahlgren, Drury – 4:52.57
6. Emma O’Neill, West Chester – 4:52.95
7. Josephina Lorda, Queens (NC) – 4:53.16
8. Melina Goebel, Grand Valley – 4:54.68

Queens sophomore Francesca Bains, who finished 7th in this event a year ago, took it out fast and established the lead from the first 50. By the 100 she was out front by half a body length, followed by Nova Southeastern’s Emma Sundstedt and West Chester junior Georgia Wright. Bains held the lead through the 400, when both Wright and Sundstedt began their descent. They shot by her at the 450 and raced each other home. Wright picked up her second win of the meet, after the 1000 on Wednesday, with 4:48.33. Sundstedt, who’d been third in the 1000 behind Wright and Bains, was runner-up with 4:48.46. Delta State’s Caroline Jouisse, 4th in the 1000 on Wednesday, squeaked past Bains on the last 25 yards to finish 3rd with 4:51.49.

Women’s 100 Yard Backstroke – Finals

• NCAA DII: 52.07 3/14/2019 Polina Lapshina, Queens (NC)
• Meet: 52.07 3/14/2019 Polina Lapshina, Queens (NC)

Podium:

1. Polina Lapshina, Queens (NC) – 52.12
2. Rachel Massaro, Queens (NC) – 53.58
3. Bobbi Gichard, Queens (NC) – 54.03
4. Vladyslava Maznytska, Queens (NC) – 54.21
5. Frouke Beeksma, Queens (NC) – 54.23
6. Rachel Helm, NMU – 54.41
7. Cassandra Wright, Sioux Falls – 54.47
8. Laura Pareja, Drury – 54.89

In her third national title in as many days, Polina Lapshina of Queens won the 100 back with 52.12, just .05 off the NCAA Division II record she set on Thursday night leading off the Queens 4×100 medley relay. Lapshina was out a tick faster than she’d been on the relay but came home slower, splitting 24.99/27.13 (vs 25.09/26.98 on the relay). Lapshina won the 50 free on Wednesday and the 100 fly with a NCAA Division II record on Thursday.

Lapshina led a 1-2-3-4-5 Queens sweep in the event. Sophomore Rachel Massaro finished second in 53.58, while freshman Bobbi Gichard went 54.03 from lane 8 to take third.

Women’s 100 Yard Breaststroke – Finals

• NCAA DII: 59.51 3/10/2017 Theresa Michalak, West Florida
• Meet: 59.51 3/10/2017 Theresa Michalak, West Florida

Podium:

1. Bailee Nunn, Drury – 59.94
2. Shelly Prayson, Queens (NC) – 1:00.46
3. Olga Tovstogan, Fresno Pacific – 1:01.01
4. Maria Rezhilo, Bridgeport – 1:01.60
5. Gracie Murphy, UCSD – 1:01.92
6. Juliana Cifuentes, Oklahoma Baptist – 1:02.56
7. Natalie Galluzzo, Truman St. – 1:03.03
8. Anika Ellingson, Hillsdale – 1:02.12

Defending champion Bailee Nunn of Drury, swimming in lane 5 after qualifying second out of morning heats, won the 100 fly with 59.94. Nunn was out quickly, turning at the 50 in record pace with 28.18. She came home in 31.76 for the win, but she fell short of the national record by .43. Last year she was out faster and home slower, going 27.99/31.90 for 59.89.

Queens’ Shelly Prayson, who had already gone a best time by .38 in prelims, took another .06 off her PB in finals and finished with 1:00.46. Prayson was out with Nunn but came home nearly a half-second slower. She nonetheless improved on her 2018 finish by one spot, taking second. Fresno Pacific junior Olga Tovstogan was fourth at the 50 wall behind Bridgeport freshman Maria Rezhilo. Tovstogan’s second 50 was 9/10 faster, though, and she secured the bronze medal with 1:01.01 to Rezhilo’s 1:01.60.

Women’s 200 Yard Butterfly – Finals

• NCAA DII: 1:56.89 3/16/2018 Mckenzie Stevens, Queens (NC)
• Meet: 1:56.89 3/16/2018 Mckenzie Stevens, Queens (NC)

Podium:

1. Tori Sopp, Drury – 1:57.19
2. Hannah Kastigar, Northern State – 1:58.85
3. Jessie Gibson, Simon Fraser – 1:59.08
4. Aleksandra Maslova, Nova S’eastern – 1:59.84
5. Kaleigh Sharkey, Simon Fraser – 2:01.02
6. Ann Carozza, West Chester – 2:01.12
7. Courtney Sherwood, TAMPA – 2:01.32
8. Marize Van Jaarsveld, Oklahoma Baptist – 2:02.23

Drury freshman Tory Sopp won the 200 fly, narrowly missing downing the meet and Division II record. Simon Fraser Jessie Gibson, who had tied with Sopp for the fastest time out of prelims, was the first to turn at the 50, in 26.36. Sopp and Northern State senior Hannah Kastigar were just 1/10 behind Gibson. Sopp took over the lead at the 100, turning just under meet record pace in 55.85. At the 150, Sopp led by half a body length over Gibson and Nova Southeastern’s Aleksandra Maslova. Kastigar was in 4th. As Sopp came to the wall with 1:57.19, missing the record by .30, Kastigar slipped by Gibson for second place. She finished in 1:58.85, about a half-second off her winning time from 2017. Gibson went 1:59.08 for third, and Maslova picked up 4th in 1:59.84.

Women’s 800 Yard Freestyle Relay – Fastest Heat

• NCAA DII: 7:12.96 2/10/2016 Queens (NC) (Castro Ortega, Arakelian, Lorda, Stevens)
• Meet: 7:14.69 3/13/2015 Queens (NC) (Castro Ortega, Gordy, Stevens, Arakelian)

Podium:

1. Queens (NC) – 7:16.20
2. Lindenwood – 7:18.38
3. Drury – 7:21.70
4. Wingate – 7:21.71
5. Nova S’eastern – 7:23.05
6. Simon Fraser – 7:23.31
7. UCSD – 7:24.67
8. West Chester – 7:25.35

Queens led all four legs of the 4×200 free relay. They led off with senior Josephina Lorda (1:48.03) and followed with sophomore Lexie Baker (1:48.91), junior Georgia DaCruz (1:50.41), and sophomore Bains (1:48.85).

Drury led off with freshman Sopp (1:48.81) and were in second place through the 350. Lindenwood moved into second place at the 400 and never gave up their position. Junior Kamila Kunka (1:49.20), freshman Jana Hellenschmidt (1:48.69), and seniors Morgan Fischer (1:51.15) and Simone de Rijcke (1:49.34) combined for 7:18.38 for the silver medal.

Drury held off a fast-charging Wingate to take 3rd by 1/100. After Sopp came freshman Rebecca Cross (1:49.20), junior Dahlgren (1:52.47), and freshman Karanne Reinertsen (1:51.22). Wingate’s quartet consisted of senior Hanna Van Horen (1:50.33), juniors Abby Kosic (1:50.81) and Leticia Odorici (1:49.81) and senior Maria Madsen (1:50.76).

In the morning heats, Nova Southeastern freshmen Amilia Nusbaum (1:52.02) and Maslova (1:51.40) and sophomores Laurel Fink (1:51.81) and Sundstedt (1:47.82) took 2.33 seconds off their seed time to win the heat of women’s 800 free relays with 7:23.05. West Chester had led for the first 700 yards but Sundstedt’s anchor took the Sharks past the Golden Rams for the win. West Chester’s finals time of 7:25.35 was 3.8 seconds faster than their entry time. Sophomore Julia McCarthy (1:50.51), senior Megan Burns (1:50.41), junior O’Neill (1:52.49), and freshman Carozza (1:51.94) contributed legs. Nova finished 5th overall, while West Chester made it in at 8th.

                     Women - Team Rankings - Through Event 30                     
 
  1. Queens (Nc)                       497   2. Drury                             281
  3. West Chester                      200   4. Nova S'Eastern                  173.5
  5. Ucsd                              159   6. Tampa                             147
  7. Wingate                         131.5   8. Delta State                       128
  9. Lindenwood                        126  10. Simon Fraser                      117
 11. Oklahoma Baptist                  116  12. Wayne State                       113
 13. Grand Valley                      100  14. Indy                               66
 15. Sioux Falls                        56  16. Nmu                                55
 17. Northern State                     54  18. Wscu                               50
 19. Colorado Mesa                      43  20. Carson-Newman                      39
 21. Clarion University                 33  22. St. Cloud St.-W                    31
 23. Findlay                            21  24. Fresno Pacific                     16
 24. West Florida                       16  26. Bridgeport                         15
 26. Florida Southern                   15  28. Iup                                14
 29. Truman St.                         12  29. Azusa Pacific                      12
 31. Bellarmine                         11  31. Hillsdale                          11
 33. Bloomsburg                          9  33. Rollins                             9
 33. Msu Mankato                         9  33. Liu Post                            9
 37. McKendree                           6  38. Mines                               5
 39. Csu East Bay                        4  39. Alaska Fairbanks                    4
 41. Saginaw Valley                      2  41. Augustana                           2
 41. Lynn                                2  44. Saint Rose                          1