CHICOPEE, Mass. – The Elms College men's and women's swim teams fell to visiting Regis College in a dual meet at Partyka Natatorium Saturday afternoon. The Pride women's team grabbed a 157-90 win over the Blazers, while the Elms men's squad was edged 137-102 by Regis.
Prior to the meet, the Blazers recognized their five departing seniors Crystal Archibald (Portland, Maine), Kim Panetta (Belchertown, Mass.), Miranda Pratt (Southington, Mass.), James Grippo (Longmeadow, Mass.), and Misha Kuyuzov (Swampscott, Mass.).
The Regis women were led by a trio of victories from sophomore Jessica Higgins (Peabody, Mass.), and freshman Amanda Graf (Newton, Mass.). Higgins claimed victories in the 800 meter freestyle (10:26.99), the 100 meter butterfly (1:14.30), and the 400 meter freestyle (5:02.84). Graf came in first in the 200 meter freestyle (2:25.99), the 200 meter backstroke (2:38.69), and the 100 meter individual medley (1:15.86). Senior Lucia Llorente Ruiz (Newton, Mass.) won the 50 meter backstroke (39.34) and the 200 meter breaststroke (3:11.88). Molly Belles (Scranton, Pa.) grabbed first in the 50 meter backstroke (33.50), while Ashlyn Deroche (North Reading, Mass.) won the 100 meter freestyle (1:08.74).
The Blazers women's team had a pair of first-place finishes from Panetta in the 50 meter freestyle and the 50 meter butterfly with personal-best times of 31.07 and 35.04, respectively. Freshman Kayla Gurney (Wilbraham, Mass.) clocked a trio of second-place finishes in the 50 meter breaststroke (39.44) the 100 meter freestyle (1:09.84), and the 100 meter individual medley (1:21.50). Sophomore Ashlee Connors (Springfield, Mass.) came in second in the 50 meter backstroke (37.92), while Archibald finished second in the 200 meter breaststroke (3:14.81) and junior Kelly O'Connell (Monson, Mass.) took second in 400 meter freestyle (5:45.59) with personal-best times.
The Regis 200 meter medley relay team of Graf, Ruiz, Amanda Iandoli (Mansfield, Mass.), DeRoche edged the Blazers squad of Connors, Gurney, Panetta, and freshman Desi Milar (Springfield, Mass.) by three seconds.
On the men's side, the Blazers collected first-place victories from juniors Ryan Burgos (Plaistow, N.H.) and Nick Cirillo (Gloversville, N.Y.), and freshman Michael Grippo (Longmeadow, Mass.). Cirillo won the 400 meter freestyle (4:36.99) and bested his previous school-record in a second-place finish in the 200 meter freestyle with a time of 2:02.43. Burgos claimed first in the 800 meter freestyle (9:37.50), while Grippo finished first in the 50 meter backstroke with a personal-best time of 31.41. Kuyuzov came in second in the 50 meter breaststroke (33.83), and James Grippo set a new school record in the 200 meter butterfly (2:35.73).
Regis junior Cassidy Bastianelli (Newton, Mass.) registered a trio of first-place finishes, while junior Bryan Johnson (Sudbury, Mass.), freshman Joshua Unas (Santa Clarita, Calif.), and sophomore Nick Rainville (Reading, Mass.) each recorded a pair of first-place finishes. Bastianelli took first in the 200 meter freestyle (2:02.40), the 50 meter freestyle (26.26), and the 100 meter backstroke (1:04.18). Johnson took first in the 50 meter breaststroke (33.48) and the 200 meter breaststroke (2:42.78). Unas recorded first-place finishes in the 200 meter butterfly (2:24.97) and the 100 meter individual medley (1:05.95). Rainville placed first in the 100 meter freestyle (55.06) and the 50 meter butterfly (27.14). Rainville's time in the 100 meter freestyle set a new pool record.
The Regis team of Bastianelli, Unas, Rainville, and junior Rob Ekberg (Northbridge, Mass.) defeated the Blazers squad of Burgos, Kuyuzov, Cirillo, and Michael Grippo by three seconds in the 200 meter medley relay.
The Blazers will return to the pool with a road trip to the University of New England Saturday for a 1:00 p.m. meet. The Pride host Bridgewater State and Husson on Saturday starting at 11:00 a.m.
Release Courtesy of Elms College Sports Information