DENTON, Texas - The Trojan swimming and diving team began their 2019-20 slate this weekend, facing a tough North Texas team. While Little Rock fell 213-84, the meet not only provided a solid starting point to build upon for the upcoming season, but also gave several new faces a chance to step up and perform.
"There is a lot of potential in this group, and they gave their all 'til the end," said head coach Amy Burgess. "We're looking forward to taking what we saw and improving each day as we move into the next weeks."
Relays
The meet opened with the 400 medley relay, where the squad of freshman
Fer Moussier, junior
Palmer Ristroph, sophomore
Carolyn Godwin, and freshman
Anna Grom combined to post a third-place finish with a time of 4:04.09. To conclude the meet, the A 200 freestyle relay of Godwin, freshman
Asmalia Redzuan, junior
Regan Lawrence, and Grom touched the wall third, clocking in at 1:41.84 to secure team points.
Diving
Junior
Sierra Thain led the way for the Trojan divers on each board, finishing third on the 1-meter with a score of 203.70 before collecting second on the 3-meter with a score 229.43, less than three points behind the winner. Classmate
Coy Jones also grabbed team points of her own with 190.28 points on the lower board and a score of 208.65 on the higher.
Freestyle Events
Two freshmen represented the Trojans in the longest event of the day, the 1000 freestyle.
Emma Bleasdell touched the wall at 11:05.23 for third, while
Fernanda Gamez also earned points in 11:11.51, good for fifth. The two also raced again in the 500, joined by classmate Redzuan. The trio finished right after one another, with Bleasdell at 5:26.28, Redzuan at 5:26.48, and Gamez at 5:27.84.
On the other end of the spectrum, Lawrence and Grom raced in the shortest event, the 50 free, collecting points for the team with times of 25.88 and 26.22, respectively. Lawrence and Godwin returned in the 100 free, finishing within tenths of each other. Godwin posted a time of 56.41 while Lawrence was 56.62. Redzuan took third in the 200 freestyle, stopping the clock at 2:00.00 exactly, while sophomore
Lea Zengerling was right behind in 2:00.98.
Backstroke Events
In the 100 back, upperclassmen put points on the board for Little Rock: junior
Mia Gibson in 1:03.84 and senior
Charis Won at 1:03.97. The longer backstroke event, the 200, saw Moussier place third overall at 2:10.77, while Zengerling touched the wall at 2:16.23.
Breaststroke Events
Ristroph made another appearance in her signature event, the 100 breast, to register a time of 1:08.66. Freshman
Taylor Baldacci also scored in the 100 with her 1:12.45. The junior also was the top Trojan in the 200, finishing at 2:33.96, while another freshman followed: this time
Nicole Burek in 2:39.47.
Butterfly Events
Moussier returned in the 200 butterfly, winning the event by over a second in 2:08.40. Senior
Rachel Maradyn scooped up a point, posting a 2:17.87. In the shorter fly event, Godwin stole second place by a little over three tenths, recording a 1:01.29. Freshman
Brianna Ridings and sophomore
Katelyn White also were awarded points, with times of 1:02.12 and 1:03.73, respectively.
400 IM
Not to be forgotten,
Ashleigh Green led the Trojans in a race meant for perhaps the most versatile and tough swimmer. The freshman finished at 4:50.61 after a strong front half.
For the latest information on Little Rock Swimming and Diving, make sure to check out LRTrojans.com. You can also find the team on social media at @LittleRockSwim on Facebook, Instagram and Twitter.
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