Women's Swimming Highlights
-
December 7, 2007
HVWAC Championship
The Sarah Lawrence College Swim team concluded their season, hosting the HVWAC championships at the Campbell Sports Center on Friday, December 7th. The competition ended with the Gryphons in third place - and the number three seems to be the operative numerical character for the team as Sarah Lawrence also had three wins and three losses for the season. The Gryphon's raced well in both individual and team events during the afternoon.
Swimming, like track, is a sport where one measures results against both the competition and oneself. And what Coach Casey Quinn will take the most pride in is the fact that several Sarah Lawrence swimmers beat their personal bests at the championships. Catie Griffin beat her finest time yet in the breaststroke during the 200 medley relay by .27 seconds. She also broke her best personal record in the 500 freestyle event coming in at 6:45.33. She came in second place in the 50 breaststroke event earning her team 13 points. And she came in 3rd place in the 100 breaststroke event earning her team 12 points.
Rachel Schneider despite having some shoulder issues this year absolutely did a fantastic job once again this year. She came in first place in the 50 butterfly event, beating her personal best time by .45 seconds. She was the anchor in the 200 freestyle relay, helping her team win second place in that event.
Coach Quinn spoke glowingly about her swimmers following the competition. "Sarah Leatherbarrow, is an amazing sprinter. She was the anchor in the 200 medley relay which started off the meet with a bang, helping her teammates win first place in the 1st event of the meet. Although Sara beat her best time by .40 seconds, Sara came in 2nd place in the 100 freestyle race and was beat by a mere half a second. She also placed second in the 50 freestyle race, again getting beat by less than half a second and breaking her previous record by .11 seconds. And Amanda Davis is an incredible backstroker. She placed 2nd in the 50 backstroke event beating her best time by .11 seconds. Amanda also swam the 100 backstroke event. Although she placed 3rd she beat her personal best time by 1.25 minutes. Emma Forrester, another sprinter on our team, she came in fifth place in the 100 yd butterfly event beating her best personal time by nearly a full minute."
Jasmin Brown has perhaps made more strides than anyone this year. The sophomore from our nation's capital volunteered to be in races that she wouldn't have been able to even complete last season. Coach Quinn adds, "she stepped by competing in the 100 yd butterfly event and the 100 IM. She also competed in the 50 back stroke event beating her personal best time by 1.62 seconds."
Emma MacHugh also swam in the 100 backstroke event. She came in 7th but more importantly, she broke her best personal time by 1.51 seconds. First-year Abigail Udden beat her best time of 50.59 in the 50 yard breaststroke event coming in at 49.89 seconds. And Tori Kleinbort competed in the 100 freestyle event beating her personal records by an extraordinary 7 seconds. She also competed in the 50 freestyle event in which she again beat her best time by 3 seconds.
Coach Quinn looks forward to building on this year's accomplishments when the Gryphons return to the pool next fall. And with none of the swimmers graduating, the prospects look positive for continued success. The swimming team has long been a source of pride for the athletic department and under Quinn's guidance the next several years should yield fruitful results for all the Sarah Lawrence swimmers.
-
Meet: December 1, 2007
SLC vs. Mt. St. Vincent
Coach Casey Quinn, in her first year as coach of the Sarah Lawrence swimmers has had the difficult task of presiding over a squad nearly half the size of other schools they compete against. The dedicated and talented Gryphon swimmers faced such a challenge at the Campbell Sports Center on Saturday afternoon when they took on Mt. St. Vincent - their second meeting this season against the Bronx college, with Sarah Lawrence triumphing in the initial encounter. Coming off their impressive victory less than 48 hours earlier against the College of St. Elizabeth, the Gryphon swimmers were eager to finish off the season with a victory against the Dolphins but Mt. St. Vincent's large roster proved too daunting a task to overcome with the Gryphons losing a hard-fought contest.
This is not to say there weren't any highlights for Sarah Lawrence - much to the contrary, with several Gryphon swimmers posting personal bests. And the thrilling centerpiece of the afternoon was a new school record. Catherine Griffin, the first year native Texan, established a new Sarah Lawrence mark in the 100 Breast Stroke, with a time of 1.21.64. To set the record in front of her classmates in the final meet of the season was a wonderful accomplishment. The state of Texas was not done leaving its imprint on the afternoon, as fellow Houstoner Abby Udden scored no fewer than three personal bests in the 50 Breast, 100 Breast and 50 Free. Sara Leatherbarrow continued her winning ways with a first place showing in the 50 Free, shaving .13 seconds off her previous best time in the event. And Amanda Davis cut more than one second off her previous best in the 50 Back.
Sarah Lawrence finishes the 2007 campaign with a 3-3 record and looks forward to the HVWAC championships next Friday. Coach Quinn takes tremendous satisfaction with the marked improvement in all her swimmers this year and is pleased to know that many will return for the 2008 season.
-
Meet: November 29, 2007
SLC vs. College of St. Elizabeth
The Gryphon swimmers returned from their Thanksgiving break to host the College of St. Elizabeth on Thursday evening, anxious to resume their winning ways against their HVWAC foe. It appears that home cooking - both literally and figuratively - was the salve the Sarah Lawrence swimmers required as they posted a close and exciting victory over the Eagles from New Jersey.
Overall, Sarah Lawrence claimed eight events, with plentiful accolades spread amongst the Gryphon squad. Sophomore Rachel Schneider posted a superb time of 31.64 in the 50 Fly and also won the 200 Individual Medley. Not to be outdone, fellow sophomore Sara Leatherbarrow also swam to a first place finish in two events, winning the 100 Backstroke - her first time entered in that race - and also the 100 Freestyle, posting a time of 1.03.77. First year Amanda Davis was entered in the 50 Free for the first time and came in with an impressive 29.88 in her inaugural effort. The other two individual victories were Emma Forrester in the 200 Free and Catherine Griffin, the 50 Breast. And perhaps most gratifying for the Sarah Lawrence swimmers was their outstanding performance in the 200 Medley Relay (Davis, Griffin, Schneider, Leatherbarrow). The Gryphons had their finest result of the season in the relay, scoring their personal best time of 2.12.79.
There won't be much time to savor this most satisfying victory though, as Sarah Lawrence will host Mt. St. Vincent Saturday afternoon at the Campbell Sports Center in the final meet of the season.
-
Meet: November 16, 2007
SLC vs. Purchase
The Sarah Lawrence women's swim team competed in their first –and only– away meet of the 2007 season when they traveled a few miles northeast to take on the Panthers of Purchase College. Purchase had yet to be defeated this year and regrettably this remained the case as the Gryphons lost a hard fought contest, 120-96.
Despite ending up on the losing end of the tally, it was nonetheless a triumphant day of sorts for the Sarah Lawrence swimmers as Gryphon personal bests were set in a remarkable 12 events. Sophomore Sara Leatherbarrow turned in a stirring race in claiming the 100 freestyle, cutting 2.58 seconds off her previous best performance. Tori Kleinbort, sophomore from Chicago, set her high mark in the 50 backstroke, clipping nearly 4 seconds off her previous best run. And Rachel Schneider cruised to victory in the 100 butterfly, scoring a personal best time of 1: 14.51. First year Amanda Davis and sophomore Emma Forrester supplemented the scoring for Sarah Lawrence as each notched second place finishes.
Coach Quinn is most proud of the fact that, though her team is not as deep as many of their opponents, the entire roster is consistently improving with each meet and the dedication and passion that each swimmer has exhibited this season has been inspiring.
After a well deserved break for Thanksgiving, Sarah Lawrence will be back in action at the Campbell Sports Center when they host the College of St. Elizabeth on Thursday, November 29th at 7 p.m.
-
Meet: November 8, 2007
SLC vs. Mt. St. Mary
Tired cliches are unavoidable in sports parlance and sure enough, unfortunately, one such phrase was appropriate this evening for the Sarah Lawrence women's swim team — all good things must come to an end. The Gryphons entered the 2007 season basking in the glow of two consecutive undefeated seasons in 2005 and 2006. It's nearly impossible –especially with the frequent rotation of students– to sustain such a stellar streak and the string of 14 consecutive victories was finally arrested by a deep and talented Mt. St. Mary College team, with Sarah Lawrence going down to defeat 146-86.
Sarah Lawrence finds themselves at a slight disadvantage this season as several veteran swimmers are currently studying abroad. However, this doesn't take anything away from the impressive performance by the talented Blue Knights from Newburgh as they claimed 9 out of 14 first place finishes. Yet the evening wasn't without its share of fine races from the Gryphons. First year Catherine Griffin shaved 7.39 seconds off her personal best in the 500 freestyle. Emma Forrester, sophomore from Washington, DC, took nearly 2 seconds off her previous best in the 50 freestyle. And fellow sophomore and Washington, DC native Jasmine Brown competed in her first individual medley race and finished strong, with a time of 1: 30.22.
Sarah Lawrence will look to return to the winning column when they travel to Purchase and resume HVWAC competition on November 16th at 7 p.m.
-
Meet: November 3, 2007
SLC vs. Mt. St. Vincent
On a resplendent early-November afternoon and with Parents Weekend giving the Sarah Lawrence campus a buzz of activity, the Sarah Lawrence women's swim team added to the excitement as they won a tight encounter against the Dolphins of Mt. St. Vincent on Saturday, emerging with a hard fought 124-101 triumph. Sarah Lawrence has now won both of their initial meets to start the 2007 season on a high note.
It was a day of milestones for the Sarah Lawrence squad as no fewer than six Gryphon swimmers established personal bests. Sophomore Rachel Schneider claimed first place in the 500 freestyle and in so doing attained her best time in the event, clocking in at 6:13.86. First year and Texas native Catherine Griffin secured first place in the 50 breast stroke, also claiming a personal best in the process. And sophomore Emma MacHugh achieved her finest effort yet in the 200 freestyle, with a 2:38.91 mark.
First year coach Casey Quinn was obviously thrilled about the close victory but was even more pleased at the rapid pace of progress being made by all nine members of her small but committed unit. Next up for the team is a non-conference meet against Mt. St. Mary College on Thursday, November 8th at the Campbell Sports Center.
-
First Meet: October 25, 2007
SLC vs. College of New Rochelle
The women's swimming team has been the jewel of the Sarah Lawrence athletics program in recent years as the squad has gone undefeated in each of the last two seasons, sweeping both the regular season title and the HVWAC championships. So with this storied legacy fresh in mind, first year Head Coach Casey Quinn commenced her term at the helm last Thursday evening when the Gryphons hosted the College of New Rochelle at the Campbell Sports Center.
And it appears as if the new season will yield the same old —and satisfying— results as Sarah Lawrence defeated the Blue Angels from their neighboring Westchester town by the score of 120-95. There were several tremendous performances from the Gryphons. Rachel Schneider, sophomore from Nantucket, showed off her versatility, claiming two first place finishes in the 200 Individual Medley and the 100 Butterfly. Not to be outdone by her elder, first year Catherine Griffin also notched two firsts with wins in the 500 Freestyle and 100 Breaststroke. And sophomore Sara Leatherbarrow took home first place in the 50 Freestyle.
Coach Quinn has an intensely enthusiastic, talented and committed group of nine swimmers —all of whom are either first years or sophomores. And if this first meet was any indication, she can expect another banner season for the Gryphons. Next up is a meet at the Campbell Sports Center on Saturday, November 3rd at 3 o'clock against Mt. St. Vincent. Sarah Lawrence has the luxury of hosting five of their six contests this season.