The UConn women’s swim and dive team was victorious against Northeastern on Saturday afternoon by a score of 180-120. After a 2-point loss to NU last season, the home Huskies were hungry for a strong win, and they truly showed out.
The meet started off shakily, with Northeastern winning the 200-yard medley relay, a mere 0.84 seconds ahead of UConn.
The UConn Huskies quickly came back in the 1000-yard freestyle, securing first, second and third place, eight full seconds before Northeastern’s Abigail Gowern took fourth. UConn senior Norah Rome took gold with a time of 10:06.40, UConn sophomore Zoey Griffin took second with 10:14.43 and UConn junior Courtney Philips took third with 10:20.15.
Northeastern’s freshman Siena Griffiths put the Huskies back on the board with a 1:51.62 win in the 200-yard free. Once again, UConn followed closely, with freshman Mia Hatzis following just .46 seconds behind.
UConn swept the next three races: 100-yard back, 100-yard breast, and 200-yard fly. They owe the back win to senior Molly Rogers (55.41), breast to sophomore Sydney Perkins (1:02.31) and fly to the top five placements, all belonging to UConn.
The 200-yard fly was possibly the most successful event of the meet. Senior Alexis Martino took first with 2:03.55, junior Olivia Herbert took second with 2:04.31, freshman Lydia Gonzales took third with 2:05.46, followed by both senior Ella Epes in fourth and sophomore Julia Fondersmith in fifth.
The seventh event, 50-yard free, broke UConn’s win streak. Northeastern took both first (junior May Bradburn) and second place (junior Mary Nordmann), finishing 0.2 seconds ahead of UConn.
Northeastern continued to collect points in the 100-yard free with first place going to freshman Alex Fuller and second place once again going to Nordmann.
UConn came back with a first-place title in the 200 yard back, thanks to their junior Bella Hoffman.
The 200-yard breast was another success for the home huskies. UConn’s Perkins cleared with 2:16.03, a full 5 seconds ahead of any other lane. UConn senior Keira Leisinger took second with 2:21.26 and UConn Gonzales took third with 2:21.65, finishing the points.
Taking first, second, and third once again in the 500-yard free gained UConn enough points to essentially guarantee their win. From UConn: Rome took first with a time of 4:56.35, Phillips took second with a time of 5:00.64, Griffin in third at 5:01.19, and junior Bridget Davis followed closely in fourth at 5:02.78.
Following this loss, The Northeastern Huskies won first and second in the 100-yard fly, although they were still too far behind in points at this point in the meet.
UConn widened the point gap more with Martino’s first place finish in the 200 yard IM. Gonzales also took second in this event.
The final event was the 400-yard free relay. Northeastern closed out the meet with a winning event, but a losing day.
The 60-point lead would not have been possible without our divers, who took every point in both the 3M and 1M dives. For 3M, junior Kate Cooper took first, senior Olivia Denerey took second and senior Darah Ostrom took third. For 1M, freshman Ruth Spiegel took first, junior Cooper took second and senior Ostrom took third.
This day was also commemorated as the Huskies Mental Health Awareness Meet. The team showed out in green swim caps and a decorated Natatorium with posters saying “It’s okay to ask for help” lining the walls. Fans had the opportunity to wear green awareness ribbons, pick up a bracelet, or dig through a variety of mental health themed stickers.
The UConn Huskies will appear next at the Iowa Invitational, Nov. 18 to 21.