Seton Hall University
Villanova
SHU Wraps Up Regular Season at RU
2/10/2013 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swimming and Diving
PISCATAWAY, N.J. – After withdrawing from the first day of competition due to inclement weather, the Seton Hall women’s swimming & diving team returned to the pool on Saturday, wrapping up their regular season with a day of events against three conference foes.
At the meet hosted by Rutgers, SHU also competed against Georgetown and Villanova as they gear up for the 2013 BIG EAST Championship, which now sits less than three weeks away.
The Scarlet Knights, GU and ‘Nova went ahead with competition on Friday and reported team scores do not account for the Seton Hall’s absence on day one.
The efforts of divers Katie Riley (Newburgh, N.Y.) and Gabby Signorelli (Massapequa, N.Y.) highlighted the nine-event program for the SHU women as the pair of Pirates finished third and fourth respectively from the one-meter board. Riley delivered a score of 226.55 to edge Signorelli’s 225.25 but in the end, both ranked in the upper-third of the 12-diver field.
Riley has registered personal bests from both one-meter and three-meters this season, and is headed to her third consecutive BIG EAST Championship. In her first collegiate season, Signorelli has qualified for the conference meet from both distances as well, and her 251.33 mark from three-meters at Connecticut (1/27) stands as the best performance by a SHU female diver in 2012-13.
Junior Kerrie Kolackovsky (Franklin Square, N.Y.) clocked team-leading times in the 200-yard breaststroke and 400-IM, finishing in the top-six on both occasions. Her 400-IM time of 4:34.85 ranked sixth among 16 entrants and Kolackovsky touched in 2:26.43 in the 200-breast to finish fifth. She was followed for SHU by freshman Megan Mallon (Glen Mills, Pa.) whose time of 2:32.18 was good enough for 10th-place.
Freshman Gabi Levine (Garwood, N.J.) produced one of two other top-six times for The Hall on the day, placing sixth in the 100-yard butterfly (59.44). Senior Andrea Shuba (Pittsburgh, Pa.) finished ninth with a time of 1:00.51, just ahead of Kelly Markwell (Old Bridge, N.J.) in 10th (1:00.71).
Levine also paced the squad in the 100-yard freestyle, touching at the front of a trio of Pirates that finished in succession. The Garwood native reached the wall in 55.04 to place ninth, less than three tenths of a second before Alie Zelenky (Mechanicsburg, Pa.) in 10th (55.32). Freshman Rae Congdon (Ottawa, Ontario) ranked 11th with a 56.57 mark.
Cora Meehan (Noblesville, Ind.) accounted for the team’s fourth top-six performance in the pool, turning in a time of 2:09.95 to place sixth and lead three Pirates among the top-10. Shuba reached in eighth (2:10.17) while freshman Alexa Santis (Ijamsville, Md.) picked up a 10th-place finish with a time of 2:14.98.
SHU’s best relay finish of the day came in the 200-yard medley where Shuba, Mallon, Markwell and Kolackovsky teamed to collect a third-place time of 1:50.40.
The Pirates will now have time to perfect their strokes before they head to Indianapolis, Ind. and the IUPUI Natatorium to take part in the 2013 BIG EAST Championships. 20 members of the SHU squad recorded at least one automatic qualifying time for the meet, led by Kolackovsky who met league standards in nine different events.
The Championship meet will kick-off on Wednesday, February 27 and continue through Saturday, March 1. The Pirates will be looking to improve upon their 10th-place team finish in 2012. Louisville is the defending team champion on the women’s side.
