Houston, Tex. (March 1, 2019) – The Northern Arizona swimming and diving team had a record-breaking day in Houston, Tex. as the team saw two program records fall. The two brilliant performances and others helped the Lumberjacks increase their lead in the Western Athletic Conference Championship on day three of four. Heading into the final day, NAU will have a 161.5 point lead on the second place New Mexico State. If the Lumberjacks can maintain first place, this will mark the sixth straight WAC Championship for the school.
"Unbelievable night," NAU head coach
Andy Johns said. "It all started in the morning session with some great swimming and diving, and it translated over to tonight."
In The Pool
Northern Arizona had its best day between the lanes, as the team won two events and broke two school records.
The first event of the day for the Lumberjacks was the 400 individual medley, where
Niamh McDonagh was able to take second with a time of 4:17.12. With this finish, McDonagh was able to break the school record for the fastest 400 IM time, which was held by Kendall Brown. The second fastest 'Jack in the final was
Sarah Takach who finished in sixth with a time of 4:26.59.
In the 100 butterfly,
Elisa Rodriguez was able to continue her spectacular WAC Championship as she took second in the event with a time of 54.22, which is the second fastest time ever swam by a Lumberjack. Behind Rodriguez was
Kate Bier who finished in fourth with a time 54.89, which is good enough to move her up to the fourth fastest time in program history.
Although NAU didn't have a top three finish,
Katy Smith was able to pick up a fifth place finish in the 200 freestyle. Even though Smith couldn't break into the top three, the freshman swam her fastest race of the season and fifth fastest in program history with a time of 1:50.10. Fellow 'Jack
Miranda Nichols also swam in the finals and finished in eighth place.
The second NAU program record fell in the 100 breaststroke as
Hope Williams was able to finish the race with a time of 1:01.16. This time beats the previous Lumberjack record by more than .8 seconds. This win marks the first of the week for Williams.
The final individual swim of the day was the 100 backstroke where the top Lumberjack finisher was
Fernanda Montiel, who finished seventh with a time of 56.14 and the fifth fastest in the school's history.
Northern Arizona was able to finish day three on a high note as the Lumberjacks 400 medley relay team took home first place with a time of 3:41.29. The relay team was made up of Montiel, Williams, Bier, and Rodriguez. This win is the first relay win for NAU, who has three second place relay finishes in the Championship. Williams and Rodriguez pick up their second wins on the week.
"Heading into today I think the girls felt the treat of a close meet and rose to the challenge," Johns said. "I also think that it took us a day or two to get going, but now all the pieces are coming together. I am excited to see what we can do tomorrow in the pool."
On the Platform
The Northern Arizona diving team entered the third day of the WAC Championship with two events and looking for its third on the platform. In the platform, the Lumberjacks were able to have three divers move onto the finals with
Olivia Payne finishing the highest.
In the platform prelims, Northern Arizona was able to have three of its divers finish in the top eight to move onto the finals. The three Lumberjacks to move onto the finals were
Christina Torrente who finished fourth, Payne who finished sixth and
Emily Sharrer who finished eighth. This marks Torrente's third final of the weekend and Sharrer's second.
In the consolation round, NAU was able to take the top two spots.
Tatiana Kurach finished first with a score of 218.90, while
Jenny Cheetham finished second with a score of 210.85. This event marks the final time Kurach will compete in the WAC Championship, and she ended on a strong note as she swept first place on the boards.
The 'Jacks ended the diving portion of the Championship by taking fifth, sixth and eighth in the platform finals. The Lumberjacks platform specialist Payne was able to have the highest finish for the team as she finished fifth with a score of 226.20. The second best NAU diver was Torrente who finished sixth with a score of 209.45, while Sharrer finished in eighth with a score of 205.20.
Looking Forward
Northern Arizona will be back in action tomorrow March 2 in the final day of the WAC Championship where the team will look to secure it
