SHIPPENSBURG, Pa. – The Shippensburg University women's swimming team fêted six seniors before its Friday night dual meet from Donald N. Miller Pool and received a wealth of splendid performances, winning seven events to record a 114-91 victory over the Crimson Hawks of IUP.

“This was a fantastic meet to send out our seniors with,” head coach Tim Verge '89 said after the final home meet of the season. “We really got up for this meet and raced hard. IUP is one of the premier programs in our conference, and it was great to race them in advance of the PSAC championship meet to see where we are at.”

Shippensburg won the first five events of the evening, including the 200-yard medley relay and the 50-yard freestyle. The Raiders finished 1-2-3 in the 200-yard freestyle to establish its early momentum and maintained a fast pace through the final event.

“We talked about coming together as a team and making sure we could win some races,” Verge said. “Tonight was truly a complete team effort. We raced smart. Even the races that didn't go our way, we kept our heads up and kept charging.”

Seniors Kate Johnson and Rachael Ballard swam the opening legs of the 200-yard medley relay that earned a victory in 1:51.16. Ballard had a busy night and was SU's top finisher in the 100-yard breaststroke and 400-yard individual medley.

The momentum-setting 200-yard freestyle was won by senior Kristen McCandless, who touched the wall in 1:58.32. McCandless also placed third in the 500-yard freestyle. 

Senior Nicole Capozzi finished second in the 100-yard freestyle and third in the 50-yard freestyle before swimming the second leg of the victorious 200-yard freestyle relay that closed out the meet.  

Additionally, senior Alyssa Boeggeman competed in the 50-yard freestyle and the 100-yard breaststroke while senior Liz Pflaum swam the 100-yard butterfly.  

“We have been training really hard, and the kids are working hard,” Verge said. “It is great to see it paying off. There's still work to do though – we must stay focused and not start to rest on our laurels.”

Freshman Tara Yohe continues to swim at a high level of competition for the Raiders. Yohe won the 1,000-yard freestyle with a time of 10:58.82 and also finished second in the 500-yard freestyle. Both efforts satisfied the PSAC qualifying standard.

Sophomore Julie Brown won the 50-yard freestyle in 24.62 seconds. She also anchored the victorious 200-yard medley relay and swam the opening leg of the victorious 200-yard freestyle relay.

Junior Julia Brownrigg won the 100-yard freestyle, anchored the victorious 200-yard freestyle relay and took second place in the 200-yard freestyle. Her time in the 200 of 1:58.84 was just 0.52 seconds behind McCandless.

Sophomore Sarah Hanson was the first to touch the wall in the 100-yard butterfly, posting a time of 1:01.65. Hanson was also a member of the victorious 200-yard medley relay.

In all, Shippensburg achieved 10 individual Top 2 finishes, seven PSAC cuts and two first-place relays.

“Tonight was a great benchmark for our program,” Verge said. “If we keep going at this rate, we will have a super conference meet.”

Shippensburg will compete next Saturday at the Navy Invitational in Maryland. It will be the team's final meet before the PSAC Championships are held February 16-19 at Cumberland Valley High School.

200 Medley Relay
1. Kate Johnson, Rachael Ballard, Sarah Hanson, Julie Brown 1:51.16

1000 Free
1. Tara Yohe 10:58.82 (PSAC)
3. Alayna Ryan 11:12.17
4. Colleen Stiles 11:14.43

200 Free
1. Kristen McCandless 1:58.32 (PSAC)
2. Julia Brownrigg 1:58.84 (PSAC)
3. Jen Flinchbaugh 2:00.65 (PSAC)

50 Free
1. Julie Brown 24.62 (PSAC)
3. Nicole Capozzi 25.10 (PSAC)
6. Alyssa Boeggeman 26.02

400 IM
3. Rachael Ballard 4:55.28
4. Jessica Trgovic 4:57.29

100 Fly
1. Sarah Hanson 1:01.65
4. Liz Pflaum 1:02.74
6. Chelsey Michael 1:08.08

100 Free
1. Julia Brownrigg 55.09
2. Nicole Capozzi 55.25
3. Jen Flinchbaugh 55.36

100 Back
3. Jessica Trgovic 1:02.70
4. Colleen Stiles 1:03.71
5. Kate Johnson 1:04.32

500 Free
2. Tara Yohe 5:20.39 (PSAC)
3. Kristen McCandless 5:26.03
6. Keeley Chenet 5:41.52

100 Breast
2. Rachael Ballard 1:10.56
5. Sarah Hanson 1:16.36
6. Alyssa Boeggeman 1:19.08

200 Free Relay
1. Julie Brown, Nicole Capozzi, Jen Flinchbaugh, Julia Brownrigg 1:39.31