2009 DePauw Invitational
This weekend the aqua lynx traveled to Greencastle, Indiana for the DePauw Invitational. This meet is a mid-season meet that is second only to the SCAC conference meet in competition. The weekend commenced on a frigid Thursday evening with a fine dining experience at the Putnam Inn and a warm-up swim to acquaint the swimmers with their aquatic surroundings. Throughout the weekend the teams battled through many difficult swims with the men's team finishing fourth out of ten teams while the women's team finished fifth out of nine teams, a respectable finish after months of being broken down with little rest. The team was motivated by the presence of many parents including Don and Sandy Duncan, the parents of our valiant coach.
Highlights of the meet include freshmen Susanna Kirby's 400 IM where she placed first overall with a time of 4:43.33, four seconds off a national B cut. Kirby also placed fourth in the 200 IM and eighth in the 200 breaststroke.
Sophomore Erik Campbell also swam well finishing third in the 200 free with a time of 1:45.32, third in the 500 freestyle, and fifth in the 200 fly. Junior Drew Wagstaff also swam an impressive meet with a best time in the 200 backstroke finishing third with a time of 1:59.01. He also finished fourth in the 200 IM and fifth in the 100 back. Joel Berger made it back top eight in all three of his events, finishing seventh in both the 100 and 200 back and eighth in the 100 fly with a time of 57.18.
Other top eight finishes were swum by Alex Herran who finished sixth in the 200 IM, Gianna Salvucci seventh in the 100 free, Pieter Smith second in the 400 IM, and Kristen Griffin and Kelly Helvenston fifth and eighth, respectively in the 100 backstroke.
Also impressive were the women's 800 free relay which placed third with Gianna Salvucci, Susanna Kirby, Mae Gillespie, and Jackie Ward and the men's 400 medley relay with a time of 3:40.94 swum by Drew Wagstaff, Pieter Smith, Joel Berger, and Erik Campbell.
The weekend ended triumphantly with a splendid meal at Terre Haute's finest, the Golden Corral. After much mid-grade steak and frozen yogurt the teams returned in the wee hours of the morning to Rhodes to begin their winter training.
