Michigan State University
M Swimming at UC - Irvine
Swimming and Diving Sweeps UC-Irvine In Dominating Fashion
12/19/2002 12:00:00 AM | Swimming and Diving
Dec. 19, 2002
The Michigan State men's and women's swimming and diving teams dominated California-Irvine in dual meet competition on Thursday, Dec. 19. The women earned a 130-94, while the men topped the Anteaters 138-83, for their first win of the season at the Anteater Aquatic Center.
"I was extremely pleased with both teams tonight," MSU head coach Jim Lutz stated following the competition. "We were strong and consistent across the board. We stood up from start to finish. It was a great way to finish up the semester."
The Spartans opened the meet, which is part of the team's extensive training trip in California, in commanding fashion, going first and second in the women's 200-medley relay. Senior Kate Duncombe (Erie, Pa.) swam the 50 back to start the race, shattering the existing pool record by .40 seconds. Duncombe swam the leadoff leg in 27.04, assisting in a first-place title for teammates Courtney Ellabarger (Carmel, Ind.), Tammy Jones (Conyers, Ga.) and Rachael Hagerman (Goodland, Kan.), who finished the four-person race in 1:47.48.
The men matched the challenge in the next event, taking first in the men's 200-medley relay. Karl Sunryd (Molndal, Sweden), Ian Clutten (Capetown, South Africa), David Sloan (Pittsburgh, Pa.) and Michael Rigali (Naperville, Ill.) won the event in 1:34.07.
Eight members of the Spartan program captured first-place titles. Joe Brennan (Poway, Calif.) captured a pair of titles, winning the 200 freestyle (1:43.37) and the 500 free (4:39.92). His time in the 500 free was nearly .04 seconds faster than the second-place finisher. Clutten also garnered wins in a pair of events, winning the 200-individual medley (1:55.80) and the 100-breaststroke (57.65).
On the women's side, Stephanie Anisko won both diving events, capturing both the one- and three-meter titles, with scores of 266.77 and 270.37, respectively. Anisko, along with fellow divers Nick Visscher (Holland, Mich.) and Justin Laskowski (Bay City, Mich.) all qualified for the NCAA with the marks they earned at UC-Irvine.
Hagerman, Jones, Sloan, Alicia Copestick (East Liverpool, Ohio) and Rudolf Wagenaar (Capetown, South Africa) all registered one first-place finish against the Anteaters. Hagerman claimed the 50 freestyle (23.94), as the Spartans took spots one through four in the event. Jones won the women's 100 butterfly (58.54), while Sloan captured the men's title (51.40). Copestick led a one-two punch on the 100 freestyle (53.62) and Wagenaar led a top three showing in the 100 backstroke (53.00).
The Spartans will continue their training trip for several more days before returning home for the Christmas holiday. Michigan State returns to action on January 10, when they host Big Ten rival Northwestern at 6 p.m., at the Charles McCaffree Pool in the IM West Building.
Players Mentioned
