Swim Teams Break Records at GLIAC Championships
PDF Above photo by Steve Woltmann: Freshman Bryan Wiener was named the GLIAC Freshman of the Year.
Michael Gates, Assistant Online Editor
The Lewis University men’s and women’s swim teams competed in their season’s first postseason event at the Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Championships in Canton, Ohio, Feb. 6-9.
The men’s team finished the meet fifth out of eight with a score of 386.5. The women finished seventh out of 10 with a score of 253.0. Despite the teams’ low placements, individual swimmers from each squad made great accomplishments at the meet.
On the second day of the championship, freshman Bryan Wiener took first place in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 20.69. Wiener’s finish broke a Lewis school record set by Josh Rogers’ 20.95 time in 2003.
“Bryan did a great job of adjusting his race in the finals, which put him on top of the podium,” Head Coach Roger Karns said, according to the Lewis Athletic Department.
On day three of the meet, Wiener broke the GLIAC 100-yard backstroke record with his time of 47.70. The finish also set a new Lewis program record.
To round out the championship, Wiener became the first Flyer since 2008 to be named the GLIAC Men’s Swimming Freshman of the Year.
“Bryan had a very strong performance at this meet,” Karns said. “It was by far the best performance by a freshman this year.”
The women’s team also made improvements in this year’s championships, finishing one spot higher overall than last season.
On the second day of the meet, senior Angela Cusack, sophomore Cindy Jezuit, freshman Kinsey Coble and freshman Mackenzie Kummer broke a women’s school record in the 200-yard freestyle. They finished with a time of 1:36.84 and finished in fourth place.
“The relay was a nice job of putting four solid swims together,” Karns said. “They had good, tight exchanges, and all four women posted really solid splits.”
On the third day of the event, the women broke two more school records.
Junior Sarah Kenis broke a 2003 school record in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:04.39. She finished in fourth place.
Kenis and Coble then teamed with senior Catie Reese and junior Caitlyn Scheirer in the 400-yard medley relay to break a 2003 school record. They finished with a time of 3:56.17 and finished in eighth place.
To finish the championship, Kenis placed second in the 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 2:18.55.
“We wanted to make a statement this week about the direction Lewis swimming was headed, and I feel they accomplished that,” Karns said.
Both teams will be back in the water at the 2012-13 NCAA Swimming Championships March 6-9 at the Crossplex Sports Complex in Birmingham, Ala.
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