#4 Brenau Swimming Wins First Meet
The #4 ranked Brenau swim team opened the 2014-2015 season with a win against Berry (Ga.) College, Columbia (S.C.) College and Life (Ga.) University as the Golden Tigers won 13 of 15 events, and qualified seven individuals and two relays for the NAIA National Championships.
Brenau racked up 157 points, easily outpacing Berry (89), Columbia (68) and Life (28).
The 200 medley relay team of Talia Sola, Mary Katherine Jabbia, Michelle Billeaud and Ella Kleinschmidt kicked off the meet with a win going 1:52.39. Distance swimmer Courtney Hayward then cruised to victory in the 1,000 freestyle (10:55.89), while the Golden Tigers finished first and second in the 200 freestyle with Shelby Rumker (2:01.44) and Kleinschmidt (2:02.14) outpacing their competition.
Backstrokers Sola and Madison Kosater gave Brenau more strong finishes as the pair finished first and second in both the 50 and 100 backstrokes hitting the wall at 28.17 and 1:01.49 and 30.29 and 1:05.29 respectively.
Shortly after, the trio of Jabbia, Sophie Nasstrom and Sarah Frey touched fast in the 50 breaststroke with respective times of 32.27, 33.65 and 34.67.
Rumker and Hayward then continued their outstanding meet performances, finishing the100 freestyle with 56.04 and 56.40 respectively.
Brenau continued their domination as Kleinschmidt won the 50 meter freestyle with a 25.87, while Nasstrom placed third in 26.10.
Jabbia turned in the top time in the 100 breaststroke with a 1:10.31, while Brenau again secured the top two spots as Hayward and Kleinschmidt finished first and second in the 500 freestyle in 5:22.02 and 5:25.47.
Billeaud captured first place honors in the 50 butterfly (26.58) and 100 butterfly (59.18), while Jabbia capped off the individual events with a win in the 200 individual medley with a fast 2:17.64.
Brenau completed the evening with a first place finish in the 200 freestyle relay in 1:44.32.
"Today's meet was a great opportunity for our team to get out the early season racing jitters," said head coach Blaire Bachman. "We are working hard in the pool and weight room to improve, and look forward to our first invitational in two weeks."
Brenau continues the early part of the season on October 10th when the squad travels to Spartanburg, S.C. for the Converse College Invitational.