NC State
NC State/GAC Invitational (Day 3)
Wolfpack Men and Women Finish Invitational with Sweeps on Both Sides
11/21/2021 7:55:00 AM | Swimming
GREENSBORO, N.C. – The Wolfpack men's and women's swimming and diving teams both took first place at the NC State/GAC Invitational to cap off a solid weekend of competition at the Greensboro Aquatic Center.
The No. 3 Wolfpack women posted 1,990.50 total points, beating out No. 6 Stanford (1,722), No. 22 Duke (1,318), No. 18 North Carolina (1,045.50) and No. 20 Arizona State (980), Penn State (856), and Army (307).
The second-ranked Pack men won their side of the meet with 2,207 points to defeat No. 15 Arizona State (1,654), No. 16 Stanford (1,476.50), Duke (987), Penn State (893.50), No. 25 North Carolina (796), and Army (453).
RELAY HIGHLIGHTS:
The Pack ended the weekend with three more NCAA A-cuts, this time in the 400-yard freestyle relay. Katharine Berkoff (48.00), Abbey Webb (48.49), Kylee Alons (47.35), and Annabel Crush (48.28) teamed up for a third-place finishing time of 3:12.12, good for the fourth fastest time in the nation this season.
In the men's A relay, Luke Miller (42.48), Nyls Korstanje (42.05), Kacper Stokowski (42.49), and Hunter Tapp (41.44) went 2:48.46 to finish second to Arizona State's 2:47.43.
The men's B relay team of Sam Hoover (43.37), Bartosz Piszczorowicz (42.67), David Curtiss (42.62), and Noah Henderson (42.00) made a name for themselves, as they dropped a solid 2:50.66, also earning the NCAA A-cut.
INDIVIDUAL EVENT HIGHLIGHTS:
The Wolfpack distance group brought the heat in the 1650-yard freestyle, finishing with a handful of top-eight finishes on both sides. Yara Hierath took third with her time of 16:13.54 seconds. Kay Foley took the fourth place spot (16:34.89), and Brooke Travis rounded out the Wolfpack women's top-eight finishes with her time of 16:39.94, good for fifth place.
The final heat of the 1650 on the men's side was filled with NC State men, as Will Gallant (1st, 14:49.10), Ross Dant (4th, 14:59.04), James Plage (5th, 15:09.11), Eric Knowles (6th, 15:13.61), and Curtis Wiltsey (7th, 15:18.46) all contributed points to the team's total. All six men were well under the NCAA B-cut standard of 15:26.19.
Katharine Berkoff completed her last individual event of the meet with her 1:51.62 second 200-yard backstroke. She was followed by Kate Moore's sixth place finish (1:54.60) and Faith Hefner's time of 1:56.37 to finish eighth. Katey Lewicki (1:56.31), Maddy Flickinger (1:56.46), Emma Muzzy (1:56.93), and Annabel Crush (1:58.04) rounded out the B-final with their performances.
The A-final of the men's 200-yard backstroke was packed with five NC State backstrokers. Kacper Stokowski claimed second with a time of 1:40.71 seconds, just off of the NCAA A-cut standard. Hunter Tapp (3rd, 1:41.49), John Healy (5th, 1:45.13), Zachary Cram (7th, 1:47.25), and Michael Moore (1:50.54) rounded out the heat for the Pack.
Sophomore Abbey Webb clocked a time of 48.74 in the 100-yard freestyle, taking fourth in the A-final. On the men's side, four members of the pack earned A-final spots. Finishing 5-6-7-8, Luke Miller (42.82), Nyls Korstanje (42.84), Noah Henderson (42.96), and Sam Hoover (43.16) all swam times under the NCAA B-cut standard for the event.
The Wolfpack women breaststrokers showed off their strength in the 200-yard breaststroke. Sophie Hansson claimed her second win of the meet with her time of 2:05.10, more than a full second under the NCAA A-cut standard. This time marks the fastest in the country this season and is good for the second-fastest time in school history. She was followed by Andrea Podmanikova (3rd, 2:09.02), Heather MacCausland (4th, 2:09.29), and Julia Poole (5th, 2:09.79), who all swam under last season's NCAA invite time.
Rafal Kusto took fourth in the men's 200-yard breaststroke and teammate Jack Moranetz won the B-final with his time of 1:57.05, over a second under the NCAA B-cut standard.
Kylee Alons' third place finish in the 200-yard butterfly (1:54.44) marks the fastest time in school history by 0.72 seconds. Freshman Grace Sheble wasn't far behind with her 1:58.45 sixth-place finish, just under the NCAA B-cut time standard.
Freshman Aiden Hayes' third place performance of 1:42.02 seconds in the 200-yard butterfly is under last season's invite time to NCAAs in the event. Zach Brown finished fifth (1:44.41) and Noah Bowers finished seventh (1:45.10) to close out the individual races of the invitational.Â
DIVING:
On the women's platform, Helene Synnott, finished fourth with a total of 197.75 points. Freshman Ashton Zuburg followed right behind her teammate 185.60 points (fifth place). Clara Tate rounded out the Wolfpack women's finalists with her eighth place performance of 179.45 points.
On the men's side, Bayne Bennett snagged third place with 288.65 total points. Patrick O'Brien (286.70), Matt Sexton (285.60), and Peter Edin (264.10) took the fourth, fifth, and eighth spots, respectively.
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UP NEXT:
Eight members of NC State's squad will head to the Fina World Championships in Abu Dhabi, from Dec. 16-21. Select Wolfpack divers will then compete at the USA Diving Winter Nationals Dec. 13-18 to wrap up the team's competition slate for the 2021 calendar year.
WOMEN'S TOP FINISHERS:
- 1,650 freestyle: Hierath (16:13.54)
- 200 backstroke: Berkoff (1:51.62)
- 100 freestyle: Webb (48.74)
- 200 breaststroke: Hansson (first place - 2:05.10)
- 200 butterfly: Alons (1:54.44)
- Platform: Synnott (197.75)
- 400 freestyle relay: Berkoff, Webb, Alons, Crush (3:12.12)
MEN'S TOP FINISHERS:
- 1,650 freestyle: Gallant (first place - 14:49.10)
- 200 backstroke: Stokowski (1:40.71)
- 100 freestyle: Miller (42.82)
- 200 breaststroke: Kusto (1:55.05)
- 200 butterfly: Hayes (1:42.02)
- Platform: Bennett (288.65)
- 400 freestyle relay: Miller, Korstanje, Stokowski, Tapp (2:48.46)
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Players Mentioned
