Men's & Women's Swimming - Patriots Finish 4th in CAA Championship

By Broadside Staff Writer Brian Chan

Making that final push is what has driven Mason swimming to success this season. For seniors Matt Kane and Sarah Bizer, the 2007 CAA Championship was their last collegiate swim meet, and represented Mason with great pride. As a result, both the men and women finished fourth. The men finished with 480.5 points, behind University of Delaware, Old Dominion University, and the eventual champion UNC-Wilmington. The women scored 438, trailing UNC-W, William & Mary, and Towson University. Junior Eric Knight, winner of three events, was honored the CAA Most Outstanding Swimmer award.

The CAA championships kicked off with the Mason women at the top after day one with a 30-point lead over UNC-W. The 800-yard freestyle relay team of sophomores Claire Weems and Caitlin Impink, freshman Jenny Kane, and senior Mallory Pucci set a school record in the event with a third-place time of 7:25.20. Mason also took the 2-3 position in the 3-meter diving event. Freshman Lisa Faulkner’s score of 294.00 won her the silver and senior Amanda Fielding placed third with a 280.50. The men completed day one in third place with both relay teams taking the bronze in the 200 medley and 800 freestyle events.

Despite dropping one spot on the second day and trailing Towson 268-200, the Mason women had a strong showing with the senior Bizer earning an NCAA B-cut on the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 23.00 seconds. The men had climbed one spot to pull within UNC-Wilmington, trailing by 47 points. Kane won the 500-yard freestyle event with a time of 4:27.79 and Knight helped the team with a first place finish in the 50-yard freestyle event with a school record time of 20.00 seconds. The men also ranked third in the 400-yard medley relay with the team of sophomore Ryan David leading off, followed by Knight and sophomores Tad Ogren and Steven Benecki.

On the third day, Mason had two victories coming from the men’s side, one from Knight and his CAA meet record of 54.93 seconds in the 100-yard breast stroke.

“I have been working harder than ever to get this one record by doing more lifting weights,” Knight said.

The record was also good enough for an NCAA B-cut. In the 400-yard individual medley, Mason’s Kane and freshman Stephen Sullivan earned a 1-2 finish and added 37 points to the team’s overall score. Kane finished in 3:57.74 and Sullivan followed him with a time of 401.73.

“Going 1-2 in an event with your teammate is a great feeling. Right before finals on Friday night, Sullivan and I talked about going 1-2 in the event not really caring what the order as long as we both came out of top,” Kane said of his teammate, “Sullivan is only a freshman and will be a vital asset to the team in the future. Sullivan's improvement over the next three years in Mason swimming will be something to watch.”

On the women’s side, the 200-yard freestyle relay team took the silver with a time of 1:34.12, breaking another school record.