2008 Woodie Awards
Swimmers smash school records at A-10 Championships
Scott Vicker
Issue date: 2/29/08 Section: Sports
The Saint Louis University swimming and diving teams finished their seasons with a splash, breaking or tying seven school records at the Atlantic 10 Conference Championships in Buffalo, N.Y.
"The team did really well," said Jim Halliburton, men's and women's swimming and diving coach. "Most of the swimmers swam their best times all year, which was our goal going in to conference.
"I would have preferred that the women score more points, but the competition is tough. Points were hard to come by."
The women's team finished with 215 points for ninth place overall.
Sophomore Anna Larson led the women with a third-place finish in the 3-meter diving board, scoring a 507.10, the second-best in SLU history. Junior Emily Walter followed Larson with a score of 357.30, a seventh-place finish.
Junior Elena Ramirez grabbed a fourth-place finish in the 200-meter butterfly finals with a time of 2:05.67. It was the first time Ramirez did not win an A-10 Championship.
Freshman Katie Robinson placed 10th in the 1650-meter free, earning the second-fastest time in Billiken history.
On the men's side, senior Brad Byars helped lead the team to an eighth-place finish overall with 257 points.
"Brad Byars came through and won the conference championship in the 100-meter freestyle," Halliburton said. "Every year we have been in the Atlantic 10 Conference, we have had at least one conference champion."
Parker described Byars' victory as "the most exciting moment of the weekend," since it was Byars' last race as a Billiken. While Byars tied his school record with his first place, junior Kevin Parker broke his own school record in the 200-meter fly twice over the weekend. He placed fourth in the event overall.
"Overall, we did well; we had a goal going in of placing top five," Parker said. "That did not happen, but everyone swam incredible from all the teams. I was impressed with how a lot of our guys swam."
In the 1650-meter free, junior Justin Breithaupt placed sixth, while freshman teammate Michael Dahle took eighth. Breithaupt notched the second-best time on the SLU history charts, while Dahle's time ranks fourth all-time.
"The team did really well," said Jim Halliburton, men's and women's swimming and diving coach. "Most of the swimmers swam their best times all year, which was our goal going in to conference.
"I would have preferred that the women score more points, but the competition is tough. Points were hard to come by."
The women's team finished with 215 points for ninth place overall.
Sophomore Anna Larson led the women with a third-place finish in the 3-meter diving board, scoring a 507.10, the second-best in SLU history. Junior Emily Walter followed Larson with a score of 357.30, a seventh-place finish.
Junior Elena Ramirez grabbed a fourth-place finish in the 200-meter butterfly finals with a time of 2:05.67. It was the first time Ramirez did not win an A-10 Championship.
Freshman Katie Robinson placed 10th in the 1650-meter free, earning the second-fastest time in Billiken history.
On the men's side, senior Brad Byars helped lead the team to an eighth-place finish overall with 257 points.
"Brad Byars came through and won the conference championship in the 100-meter freestyle," Halliburton said. "Every year we have been in the Atlantic 10 Conference, we have had at least one conference champion."
Parker described Byars' victory as "the most exciting moment of the weekend," since it was Byars' last race as a Billiken. While Byars tied his school record with his first place, junior Kevin Parker broke his own school record in the 200-meter fly twice over the weekend. He placed fourth in the event overall.
"Overall, we did well; we had a goal going in of placing top five," Parker said. "That did not happen, but everyone swam incredible from all the teams. I was impressed with how a lot of our guys swam."
In the 1650-meter free, junior Justin Breithaupt placed sixth, while freshman teammate Michael Dahle took eighth. Breithaupt notched the second-best time on the SLU history charts, while Dahle's time ranks fourth all-time.
Be the first to comment on this story