GAINESVILLE, Fla. - After winning its first three meets of the season, the FGCU swimming and diving team dropped its first meet of the year to #15 Florida on Saturday, 173-125.
Despite the loss, the Eagles had strong individual performances with 32 season-best times, highlighted by
Gracie Redding (Orlando, Fla./The First Academy),
Rebecca Moynihan (Palmerston North, New Zealand/Waiopehu College) and
Cassidy Fry (Oakwood, Ohio/Oakwood HS) who were all winners in their races.
Competing in the diving competition for the first time this year, the Eagles took home 2nd- and 3rd-place finishes in the 3-meter board, and were victorious courtesy of
Melissa Novak (Frederick, Md./Oakdale HS) in the 1-meter dive by over 40 points.
"The team did a great job competing against a very well-coached and strong Florida team," FGCU head coach
Dave Rollins said. "We have two weeks to clean up some details before we head to Ohio State for our next meet, and we are excited to get up there and have some fun."
Despite losing the first six of events of the day, the relay team of
Doris Eichhorn (Berlin, Germany/HTW Berlin),
Sommer Harris (Richmond, Va./St. Catherine's School), Fry and Redding raced for their best time of the season at 1:44.02 to finish in 2nd place.
Petra Halmai (Dombovar, Hungary/Lanczos Kornel Secondary Grammar School),
Elizabeth White (Fort Myers, Fla./Riverdale HS),
Kiley Eble (Cleveland, Ohio/Gilmour Academy) and Moynihan fished a little over two seconds behind at 1:46.18.
Eichhorn finished in 3rd in the 100-yard backstroke in the third event, but matched her season-best time of 56:33 to earn three points for the Green and Blue.
The first win of the day came from Redding in the 50-yard backstroke at 23.48, narrowly edging Emma Ball from UF and Moynihan (51.14), who finished 3rd.
Moynihan, though, would win her first event of the day by coming in 1st in the 100 free, with Ball sandwiched between Moynihan and Redding.
The highlight of the day from the Eagles came in the 100-yard butterfly with FGCU taking the top 3 spots with Fry winning the event at 55.32. Elmgreen and Eble finished 2nd and 3rd, respectively.
Novak followed that up with her diving win with a total of 290.55 points. FGCU also earned points from
Stevie Meyerson (Suffern, N.Y./Suffern HS) and
Margot Kessler (Boca Raton Fla./Boca Raton Community HS) in their return back to the pool after not competing vs. Rutgers or North Florida/Campbell.
The final event was another 2nd-place finish for FGCU in the 400-yard freestyle relay with Moynihan, Redding,
Hannah Burdge (Stuart, Fla./Martin County HS) and Fry falling a little over a second behind at 3:25.40 for 2nd place.
The Eagles will next be in action in a three day event in the Ohio State Invitational Nov. 17-19.
IRMA RELIEF DONATIONS
In the wake of Hurricane Irma, many individuals and families throughout Southwest Florida are still in desperate need of assistance. To aid in those relief efforts, FGCU Athletics will be collecting donations at all Eagle home games for the immediate future. Donation items most needed include: non-perishable food, clothing, household items and first-aid supplies. Additionally, those unable to attend upcoming home games can drop off donations in canisters located in the Alico Arena lobby. All donations will be given to those hardest hit in Lee and Collier counties.
FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-date coverage of FGCU women's swimming and diving, follow us on Twitter @FGCU_WSWIM and visit www.FGCUAthletics.com where full recaps and results will be available.
HEAD COACH DAVE ROLLINS
In his first year with the program in 2016-17, head coach Dave Rollins led FGCU to its eighth CCSA Championship in a span of nine years and guided the Eagles 200 free relay team to All-American honors. FGCU registered points at the NCAA Championships for the fourth-straight season and ultimately turned in its third-best finish all-time (T-41st). Prior to FGCU, Rollins was the associate head men's swimming coach at Ohio State University and brought 10 years of coaching experience at the club, high school and collegiate levels. A standout collegiate athlete in his own right, Rollins was a nine-time NCAA All-American and national champion as a member of the University of Arizona swimming & diving team from 2002-06.
SUPPORT THE CAUSE
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.
