Women's swimming and diving team beats Saint Mary's, 153-137

The Olivet College women's swimming and diving team won 11-of-16 events en route to a 153-137 victory over Saint Mary's (Ind.) College tonight in a Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) dual meet at the Upton Center Pool in Olivet.

The Comets got off to a fast start by taking first-place in the 200-yard medley relay after the winning Saint Mary's team was disqualified for jumping early on two legs. Olivet's team of Jackie Taylor (Plainwell), Lauren Siedlik (Livonia/Churchill), Jami Lingbeek (Plainwell) and Kalee Redder (Grandville/Jenison) clocked-in at 1:56.54.

In the 1,000-yard freestyle, the highest Comet finisher was Sarah Boyd (Napoleon, Ohio), who took third-place in 11:31.50. In the next event, the 100-yard freestyle, Amy Johnson (Gaylord) finished first by more than three seconds with a time of 2:00.71. Taylor kept the winning going by taking first in the 100-yard backstroke (1:02.39).

In the 100-yard breaststroke, Erin Tramper (Jenison) led a 2-3 Olivet finish with a time 1:13.11, followed by Siedlik in 1:14.51. Heather Michalsen (Plymouth/Salem) edged three Saint Mary's swimmers for the top spot in the 200-yard butterfly by 1/10 of a second, 2:24.68 to 2:24.78.

Johnson headlined a 1-2 Comet finish in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 25.45 seconds. Redder was right behind her in 25.90. In the one-meter diving, Sara Griffith (Brighton) took the top spot with 201.45 points. The 1-2 finish for the 100-yard freestyle was opposite of the 1-2 finish in the 50 free. This time, Redder beat Johnson by .07 seconds, 55.74 to 55.81.

In the 200-yard backstroke, Taylor set a pool record with a first-place finish and time of 2:16.60. Her time was nearly four seconds faster than the second-place finisher. Lingbeek placed third in 2:21.76. The 200-yard breaststroke featured another 1-2 Olivet finish, as Siedlik finished first in 2:38.65, and Tramper was second in 2:38.72. Boyd clocked-in at 5:39.42 for a third-place finish in the 500-yard freestyle.

The 100-yard butterfly saw Lingbeek place second in 1:04.61, followed by Michalsen in third at 1:06.11. Griffith took the top spot in the three-meter diving with 207.90 points. In the 200-yard individual medley, Taylor was the Comets' top finisher, finishing third in 2:25.04. Michalsen was only .21 seconds behind.

Olivet ended the night by finishing first in the 200-yard freestyle relay. The team of Johnson, Boyd, Lingbeek and Redder touched the wall in 1:44.44.

The Comets will get some rest tonight and are back in the pool tomorrow against Alma College. Action at the Upton Center Pool gets under way at 1 p.m.