Women's Swimming Breaks 2 Records on First Day of Metros

Preliminaries | Finals

PISCATAWAY, N.J.—Sarah Lawrence College women's swimming began the weekend with a pair of new team records, as the Gryphons competed on day one of the 2017 Metropolitan Collegiate Swimming & Diving Conference Championships, hosted by Rutgers University at RU Aquatic Center on Friday.

IN SHORT
Sarah Lawrence – 99 points – 9th of 15 teams

DISTANCE RECORD
Sophomore Devon Peal (Springfield, Va./West Springfield) set a new individual record for the Gryphons, breaking her own mark in the 500 yard freestyle. Peal qualified for the evening's bonus consolation final and swam to a new career best of 5:25.08. The effort was more than three seconds faster than her own previous record and earned 18th place overall.

GRYPHONS RELAYS
Peal led the Green and White 400 yard medley relay to two record-breaking swims on the day. She joined junior Hannah Lawson (Portland, Ore./Pacific Crest Community School), rookie Naima Joy Mackrel (Woodstock, N.Y./Kingston) and senior Gabrielle Risica (Narragansett, R.I./Narragansett) in posting a new team record of 4:10.74 during the morning's preliminary session. In the evening's consolation final, the quartet won their heat and took nearly three seconds off their time, bettering their record to 4:07.83 for ninth place overall.

The Gryphons also picked up points for their effort in the 200 freestyle relay. Risica, junior Leah Myrtil (Boston, Mass./Elizabeth Seton Academy), junior Elizabeth Kroll (Sacramento, Calif./The Met Sacramento) and senior Jacqueline Quirk (Millburn, N.J./Millburn) put together a time of 1:47.75. The effort marks the team's season best in the event and was good for 13th place.

TOP INDIVIDUALS
Lawson recorded the team's best individual finish on the day. In the 200 yard individual medley, Lawson finished the morning's preliminaries in a tie for eighth place (2:12.54). In dramatic fashion, the junior Gryphon took to the pool to face Skyline rival Merchant Marine in a swim-off for the final spot in the championship heat. Lawson (2:12.68) was narrowly defeated by a margin of 0.28 second, earning her a spot in the consolation final. In the evening, Lawson posted a time of 2:13.67, good for an overall finish of 12th place.

Mackrel was the Gryphons' third and final individual qualifier. In the 50 freestyle preliminaries, she posted a time of 25.06, earning a spot in the bonus consolation final. In the evening, she improved to 25.01 and took 17th place by winning her heat with her fastest time in the event as a Gryphon.

NOTABLE SWIMS
Caitie Adler (Pikesville, Md./Wilde Lake)
200 Individual Medley – 2:35.11 – Career Best

Rachel Barkowitz (Fleming Island, Fla./Dedham (Mass.))
200 Individual Medley – 2:40.59 – Career Best

Sarah Blanche Klein (Locust, N.J./Ranney School)
500 Freestyle – 6:44.08 – Career Best

Elizabeth Kroll (Sacramento, Calif./The Met Sacramento)
50 Freestyle – 28.41 – Season Best

Lydia Mullan (Winchester, Mass./Winchester)
200 Individual Medley – 2:50.45 – Season Best

Leah Myrtil (Boston, Mass./Elizabeth Seton Academy)
50 Freestyle – 28.03 – Season Best

Devon Peal (Springfield, Va./West Springfield)
100 Backstroke – 1:01.04 – Career Best

Jacqueline Quirk (Millburn, N.J./Millburn)
200 Individual Medley – 2:27.16 – Career Best

Gabrielle Risica (Narragansett, R.I./Narragansett)
50 Freestyle – 26.00 – Career Best

UP NEXT
Action continues with day two of the championships on Saturday. Preliminaries begin at 9:30 a.m. with finals scheduled to start at 5 p.m.