Kabacinski Sprints to 50 Free Record

Nov. 30, 2012

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Hawkeye Invitational – Nov. 30 Results

IOWA CITY, Iowa — University of Iowa freshman Olivia Kabacinski sprinted to a school record in the 50 freestyle during the opening day of the Hawkeye Invitational on Friday at the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center. The Hawkeyes are currently in tied for second place in the seven-team field.

“We had a lot of great swims,” said UI head coach Marc Long. “Becky’s (Stoughton) win was good to see, she has been working hard this semester, and it is good to see her in racing action again. There is a lot of great action, some of the best swimming in the country, if not the world as far as some of the competitors here.”

Michigan is leading the Invitational with 237.5 points, followed by Nebraska (171), Iowa (171), Northwestern (159.5), Denver (90), Washington State (88), Wisconsin-Milwaukee (79) and Notre Dame (52).

Kabacinski swam to the school record during the morning preliminaries, posting a time of 22.88. Kabacinski, the first Hawkeye to break the 23 second mark, bested Stacey Wertz’s record of 23.02, which had stood since 2000. The freshman ended up finishing third overall in the event with a time of 23.06 during Friday night’s final.

“It was a really good start to the meet and a good start to my freshman career,” said freshman Olivia Kabacinski of the school record. “I had a good start and was catching water really well; it was my fastest time ever, so I’m really excited about it.”

Sophomore Heather Arseth also tallied a top 10 finish in the 50 free, touching the wall in 23.57. Arseth swam a personal best of 23.41 during the prelims.

Iowa had two of the top-four finishes in the 500 freestyle. Sophomore Becky Stoughton overtook Michigan’s Adrienne Bicek in the final 20 yards to claim the title in the 500 free in 4:43.20. Her time is a meet record, an NCAA `B’ qualifying time, and ranks 12th fastest nationally. Junior Lindsay Seemann finished in fourth in the event with a time of 4:50.76, the fifth fastest in school history.

Kabacinski also helped the Hawkeyes to a pair of top-five finishes in the 400 medley and 200 free relays. Iowa closed out the night with a third place finish in the 400 medley relay when Arseth, junior Karolina Wartalowicz, junior Abbey Tuchscherer, and Kabacinski posted a time of 3:42.52.The time is the third fastest in school history.

In the 200 free relay, Kabacinski, Arseth, junior Elise Borja, and freshman Maddie Bro touched the wall in 1:32.90 to finish fifth. The time ranks as the third fastest in the record books.

Junior Emily Hovren posted an eighth place finish in the 200 IM, finishing with a finals time of 2:04.35. During Friday’s morning prelims, Hovren swam a personal best time of 2:02.47.

Junior Lauren Kelba posted season best score in the 1-meter springboard, accumulating a score of 267.55 to finish sixth overall. Redshirt sophomore Joelle Christy also advanced to the final, where she placed eighth with 227.35 points.

Action resumes Saturday with prelims beginning at 10 a.m.