MIAMI (Nov. 23, 2016) – The FIU swimming and diving team had one of its most successful weekends at the Louisville Invitational Nov. 18-20. The Panthers finished in second place, while tallying 16 NCAA B standard qualifying times, eight NCAA Zone B diving qualifying scores and breaking three school records.
During the three-day invitational, FIU produced 14 times that rank in the Top 50 in the NCAA. The team also jumped up to No. 36 in the latest CollegeSwimming.com poll and received votes in the latest TYR/CSCAA Division I Poll.
In the 50 Free,
Naomi Ruele, the reigning Conference USA Swimmer of the Week, notched the 10
th-fastest time in the country with a 22.28 during the first leg of the 200 Free Relay. Her team (Ruele,
Letizia Bertelli,
Marie Lauridsen and
Jennifer Deist) registered a school-record time of 1:30.50. The result is the 15
th-fastest time in the NCAA. Bertelli, who finished second in the 50 Free (22.66) notched a second-place finish with the 41
st-fastest time in the nation.
Bertelli recorded a lead-off time in the 400 Free Relay of 49.32. Her results was 0:02 second's off of the school record in the 100 Free held by Ruele (49.30 at the Conference USA Championships – 2/27/16) and was the 37
th-fastest time in NCAA action. The team of
Bertelli,
Ruele,
Lauridsen and
Deist set the school record in the 400 Free Relay with a time of 3:17.60 (10th-fastest time in the nation). Ruele notched the 45
th-fastest time in the 100 Free with a finals time of 49.47. During the prelims of the 100 Back, the Gaborone, Botswana, native qualified for the finals with a time of 53.34 (27
th-fastest time in the NCAA).
Kyna Pereira registered the 27
th-fastest time in the 200 Free, swimming a 1:46.53 in the lead leg of the 800 Free Relay. Along with Pereira,
Skye Carey,
Berta Triola and
Megan Bowen tallied the 20
th-best time in the nation with a time of 7:17.54 (second place).
Pereira also dominated the distance events with a school-record finish in the 500 Free (4:43.81) for the 24
th-fastest time in the nation and winning the 1650 Free and set the meet record, posting a time of 16:26.04 (26
th-fastest in the nation). The native of Umkomaas, South Africa, placed first in swimming's longest distance with the NCAA B standard qualifying time. Her time was less than two seconds off of the school record which Pereira set during last year's C-USA Championships (16:24.36).
In the finals of the 200 Back,
Karin Tomeckova notched 1:56.46 (the 44
th-fastest in the nation).
The team of
Jennifer Alfani,
Taylor Grabenhorst, Bertelli and Ruele registered a second-place finish in the 200 Medley Relay with the 24
th-fastest time in NCAA action.
In the 400 Medley Relay, Ruele, Grabenhorst, Bertelli and Deist recorded the 33
rd-fastest time in the nation with a 3:40.59.
The Panthers will next host Georgia Southern on Thursday, Dec. 15. The dual meet from the Biscayne Bay Aquatic Center is slated to begin at 1:00 p.m. ET.
Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Twitter (@FIUSwimDive) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSwimmingAndDiving) for all the latest Swimming and Diving news. Follow all of FIU's 18 athletic teams on Twitter (@FIUAthletics), Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSports), YouTube (FIUPanthers), and Instagram (FIUathletics).
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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium.
About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offers more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $9.8 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.
