Friday Results

BUFFALO – The State University of New York at New Paltz women's swimming team strengthened its hold on second place following day two of the swimming portion State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Swimming & Diving Championships on Friday at Erie Community College's Burt Flickinger Aquatic Center, as the Hawks have earned 445 points.
 
SUNY Geneseo sits atop the team standings with 650 points, while SUNY Cortland and SUNY Oneonta rank third (279) and fourth (243.5), respectively. SUNY Fredonia (fifth, 183), SUNY Oswego (sixth, 167.5), Buffalo State (seventh, 134), The College at Brockport (eighth, 129) and SUNY Potsdam (ninth, 121) round out the remainder of the field.
 
Action concludes at the meet tomorrow, with the preliminary heats set for 10 a.m. and finals slated for 6 p.m. Following the preliminary heats, all but the final heat of the 1,650 freestyle, a timed-final event, will be contested.
 
The Hawks kicked off Friday's evening session with a second-place finish in the 200 medley relay, as the foursome of freshman Nicole Lee (Farmingdale, N.Y./Farmingdale), sophomores Megan Joseph (Hauppauge, N.Y./Hauppauge) and Molly McCulloch (Rome, N.Y./Holland Patent) and freshman Kaleigh O'Halloran (Sayville, N.Y./Sayville) combined for a time of 1:48.85.
 
Freshman Jaimie Kaefer (North Bellmore, N.Y./W.C. Mepham) earned the SUNYAC title in the 400 individual medley, as she covered the event in an NCAA "B" cut time of 4:36.01, finishing four seconds in front of the second-place competitor. As a result of her finish, she automatically earns First-Team All-SUNYAC recognition. Senior Ella Graffin (Ithaca, N.Y./Ithaca) and junior Ann Fici (Hauppauge, N.Y./Hauppauge) also qualified for the championship final and finished sixth (4:49.40) and seventh (4:54.17), respectively. Freshman Samantha Conforti (Mohegan Lake, N.Y./Lakeland) won the consolation final of the event, ranking ninth overall with a time of 5:00.08.
 
McCulloch received Second-Team All-SUNYAC honors in the 100 butterfly, as she finished second in the event with a standard of 57.75. Senior Maggie Heaton (New Milford, Conn./New Milford) also swam in the championship final and finished sixth (59.54), while senior Kim Kallanrsude (Muttontown, N.Y./Jericho) topped the consolation final with a ninth-place performance (1:01.00). Conforti, coming off the 400 individual medley, muscled through the tough double by placing 12th (1:01.97).
 
Senior Cassidy Griger (Cooperstown, N.Y./Cooperstown Central) will now be able to add a SUNYAC individual championship to her already-impressive New Paltz swimming résumé, as she pushed past the 200 freestyle field with a winning time of 1:53.91. By virtue of her finish, Griger earns First-Team All-SUNYAC honors. Freshman Katie Donlevy (Bayside, N.Y./The Mary Louis Academy) won the consolation final with a ninth-place 1:57.13, while junior Aimee Del Favero (Auburn, N.Y./Home School) finished 13th (2:00.66) overall.
 
Joseph and senior Casey O'Connor (New Fairfield, Conn./New Fairfield) led the Hawks in the 100 breaststroke championship final, placing fourth (1:09.13) and sixth (1:10.75), respectively. Senior Krista VerMeersch (Newark, N.Y./Newark) qualified for the consolation final of the event and took 15th (1:12.91).
 
In the 100 backstroke, O'Halloran and Lee led the way with respective finishes of sixth (1:01.05) and eighth (1:02.21) place, while sophomore Lindsay Feminella (Staten Island, N.Y./St. Joseph by-the-Sea) competed in the consolation final and finished 13th (1:02.80) overall.
 
Finally, in the 800 freestyle relay, the quartet of Kaefer, Griger, Donlevy and Del Favero teamed up to chart a second-place time of 7:52.46.