COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Virginia Tech swimming and diving teams wrapped up competition with Top-15 opponents Ohio State and Indiana, as well as Big Ten opponent Penn State. The men's team took down Penn State, but lost the battle against Ohio State and Indiana. The women's team came up short in its duals with the Buckeyes and the Hoosiers.
It was a weekend of fast swimming and tough competition. Day two consisted of many Top-25 swims from both sides – four women and 13 men. Izzi Mroz and Teagan Moravek finished three and four on the boards in a close battle during the 1-meter portion. Newcomers Ben Eckerson, Gabriel Yuk, Anna Summers, Emma Inch, Joseph Hong, Hayden Jay, Charlotte Rigg, Luan Grobbelaar, Luis Dominguez, Maddy Grafmiller and Nikolas Lee-Bishop all got to experience big competition against multiple ranked opponents.
FINAL SCORE
Men
VT 261 | PSU 90
VT 146 | OSU 207
VT 105 | Indiana 248
Women
VT 128 | OSU 225
VT 136 | Indiana 217
HEAD COACH SERGIO LOPEZ MIRO
"I'm very happy with our performance. We swam against two of the best teams in the Big Ten and the nation. It was huge for us just to be able to compete at that level. We did a very good job and stayed the course. We had some good things and some not so good, but I'm very happy with how the team reacted and how they competed. I think this is a good sign for us. By no means is the work done, we have to keep working. The next stop is coming back in three weeks for the invitational. Hopefully, we keep moving in the direction that we're going. I'm very happy for the Hokies. Both the swimming and diving teams did an awesome job. I'm very thankful to Coach Bill from Ohio State for giving us the opportunity to come race them. We've been racing them for the last four years and it's been great. I'm very excited to keep going with this competition and hopefully, we can keep racing teams like Indiana and Penn State in the future."
TECH WOMEN
Karisa Franz was impressive in the water for the Hokies. She was a part of two relays and the 100 fly. Franz was the third leg of the 200 medley relay with Atkinson, Bentz, and Shackelford. Her 50 fly split landed her a spot in the Top 25, as well as contributed to a third-place finish for the Hokies. Later in the day, she powered through the 100 fly, placing second. Lastly, Franz was the second leg of the 400 free relay with Judge, Pouch, and Larson, which placed fifth.
Caroline Bentz performed well in all three of her events. She was the second leg of the 200 medley relay which placed third. She then went on to swim in the 100 back finishing in fourth. She finished with a time of 54.90, only five-tenths of a second behind teammate Emma Atkinson who placed first. Lastly, she was the third leg of the 400 free relay that earned first place.
Reka Gyorgy showed her versatility in the pool throughout the day. She kicked off the morning in the 400 individual medley. Gyorgy finished in fourth place with a time of 4:20.40, earning her a place in the Top 25. Next, she swam in the 200 breast, earning ninth with a time of 2:22.14. To wrap up the competition, she was a part of the winning 400 free relay, which also earned a place in the Top 15 with a time of 3:21.51.
TECH MEN
Carles Coll Marti dominated the pool throughout the day. He swam in three events, placing in the Top 25 in every one of them. He started the morning in the 200 medley relay with Manoff, Ramadan and Hallock. They earned third place with a time of 1:27.19 and a spot in the Top 25. In addition, Coll Marti's 50 breast split during the relay placed him in the Top 5. His next event was the 50 freestyle. Coll Marti got second place with a time of 19.98, a personal best and another Top 25 finish. To close out the afternoon, Coll Marti was the second leg of the 400 free relay with Ramadan, Manoff and Hallock. They earned a time of 2:56.14 – a Top 10 time. Coll Marti's 100 free split (43.17) got him another spot in the Top 25.
AJ Pouch owned the breaststroke during day two. He started the morning swimming breaststroke in the 200 medley relay with Tornqvist, Eichberg and Eckerson. His 50 split placed him in the Top 10. He then went on to swim in the 200 breast. In a close battle for first, Pouch came out on top. He finished with a time of 1:58.43 putting him in the Top 25.
Blake Manoff helped the Hokies in many events. He was the lead-off in the third place 200 medley relay with Coll Marti, Ramadan and Hallock. His next event was the 200 free where he placed third with a time of 1:37.51. He concluded the day with the 400 free relay as the third leg. His relay placed third with a time of 2:56.14, landing them in the Top 10.
TOP 25 TIMES
Women
50 Fly Split – Karisa Franz – 24.25
50 Free Split – Sarah Shackelford – 22.62
400 IM – Reka Gyorgy – 4:20.40
400 Free Relay –Shackelford, Landon, Bentz, and Gyorgy – 3:21.51
Men
200 Medley Relay – Manoff, Coll Marti, Ramadan, and Hallock – 1:27.19
50 Breast Split - Carles Coll Marti – 24.32 and AJ Pouch – 24.91
50 Fly Split – Youssef Ramadan – 20.76 and Dylan Eichberg – 21.69
50 Free Split – Thomas Hallock – 19.73
400 IM – Filippo Dal Maso – 3:55.30
100 Fly – Youssef Ramadan – 46.63
200 Breast – AJ Pouch – 1:58.43
50 Free – Carles Coll Marti – 19.98
400 Free Relay – Ramadan, Coll Marti, Manoff, and Hallock – 2:56.14
100 Free Split – Youssef Ramadan – 43.82 and Carles Coll Marti – 43.17
RESULTS – SWIMMING
DAY 2
200 Medley Relay
W: 4th – Emma Atkinson (25.69), Caroline Bentz (30.33), Karisa Franz (24.25), and Sarah Shackelford (22.62) – 1:42.89
7th – Alex Slayton (26.45), Anna Landon (29.63), Julia Bruneau (25.48), and Abby Larson (23.35) – 1:44.91
M: 3rd – Blake Manoff (22.38), Carles Coll Marti (24.32), Youssef Ramadan (20.76), and Thomas Hallock (19.73) – 1:27.19
8th – Sam Tornqvist (22.69), AJ Pouch (24.91), Dylan Eichberg (21.69), and Ben Eckerson (20.35) – 1:29.64
400 IM
W: 4th – Reka Gyorgy – 4:20.40
12th – Charlotte Rigg – 4:37.40
13th – Emma Inch – 4:43.66
M: 3rd – Filippo Dal Maso – 3:55.30
4th – Keith Myburgh – 3:57.04
10th – Luan Grobbelaar – 3:59.60
200 Free
W: 6th – Emma Atkinson – 1:51.47
10th – Megan Judge – 1:52.84
11th – Rose Pouch – 1:52.91
M: 3rd – Blake Manoff – 1:37.51
7th – Noah Desman – 1:39.10
9th – Luis Dominguez – 1:39.55
100 Fly
W: 2nd – Karisa Franz – 55.03
12th – Morgan Miller – 57.91
14th – Julia Bruneau – 59.05
M: 4th – Youssef Ramadan – 46.63
8th – Antani Ivanov – 48.10
10th – Henry Claesson – 48.29
200 Breast
W: 9th – Reka Gyorgy – 2:22.14
11th – Charlotte Rigg – 2:23.88
12th – Lauren Barakey – 2:24.26
M: 1st – AJ Pouch – 1:58.43
7th – Joseph Hong – 2:03.61
8th – Keith Myburgh – 2:03.74
100 Back
W: 1st – Emma Atkinson – 54.42
4th – Caroline Bentz – 54.90
15th – Anna Summers – 57.72
M: 7th – Forest Webb – 48.53
8th – Sam Tornqvist – 48.59
11th – Gabriel Yuk – 49.33
50 Free
W: 3rd – Sarah Shackelford – 23.23
6th – Anna Landon – 23.59
12th – Megan Judge – 24.10
M: 2nd – Carles Coll Marti – 19.98
8th – Thomas Hallock – 20.42
11th – Henry Claesson – 20.80
1,000 Free
W: 3rd – Chase Travis – 10:05.46
8th – Maddy Grafmiller – 10:21.70
8th – Morgan Miller – 10:21.70
M: 4th – Antani Ivanov – 9:15.81
10th – Filippo Dal Maso – 9:27.22
11th – Nikolas Lee-Bishop – 9:31.55
400 Free Relay
W: 1st – Sarah Shackelford (49.94), Anna Landon (50.87), Caroline Bentz (49.86), and Reka Gyorgy (50.84) – 3:21.51
5th – Megan Judge (51.92), Karisa Franz (51.39), Rose Pouch (52.07), and Abby Larson (52.57) – 3:27.95
M: 3rd – Youssef Ramadan (43.82), Carles Coll Marti (43.17), Blake Manoff (44.67), and Thomas Hallock (44.48) – 2:56.14
8th – Henry Claesson (45.23), Dylan Eichberg (44.73), Filippo Dal Maso (48.83), and Noah Desman (44.39) – 3:03.18
RESULTS – DIVING
1M – Women
3rd – Izzi Mroz – 288.00
4th – Teagan Moravek – 278.90
13th – Miah Fisher – 235.45
1M – Men
11th – Noah Zawadzki – 290.75
12th – Taj Cole – 290.70
15th – Daniel Valmassei – 260.90
The Hokies will have their second Hokie Belt Challenge at the Christiansburg Aquatic Center on November 6th. They will then travel back to Columbus to attend the Ohio State Invite from November 18th- 20th.