University of Houston
UH/Rice Relay Carnival
Swimming and Diving Makes Final Tweaks at UH/Rice Carnival
10/15/2010 12:00:00 AM | Swimming & Diving
Oct. 15, 2010
HOUSTON - The University of Houston swimming and diving team competed in their final non-scored event before the season opener at the UH/Rice Carnival on Friday afternoon.
Hosted by Rice University, the Cougars broke a pair of facility records at the David and Barbara Gibbs Recreation and Wellness Center Competition Pool. Sophomore Reka Kovacs dominated the 200-yard butterfly, winning the race en route to setting the new pool record of 2:05.34. Junior Kim Eeson broke the second record of the afternoon with her 51.47 split time in 4x100-yard freestyle relay.
"I was very happy with Reka's 200 (butterfly) and Kim's 100 (split in the 400-yard freestyle relay)," assistant coach Jaime Lewis said. "I also thought Natalie Newcomb's 200-yard breaststroke was very good for her - just off her best time."
The cross-town rivals squared off against each other in 11 different swimming events. Due to Rice not fielding a diving team, the Cougar divers competed in an intersquad meet in the Cougars' home pool at the Campus Recreation and Wellness Center Natatorium.
The 400-yard medley relay kicked off the meet and UH's relay team of Marissa Blumenthal, Beccy Hillis, Andrea Kells and Kim Eeson took second with a time of 3:56.11. Their fellow teammates Kimmy Ballo, Holli Pisarski, Natalie Newcomb and Krystan Morrell nabbed fourth place with a time of 4:11.21.
Kovacs started the meet well in the 200-yard freestyle, coming in second (1:55.98) despite the event not being one she regularly competes in. Head coach Mark Taylor wanted his swimmers to have the opportunity to compete in events they don't normally get to in Friday's exhibition.
"We didn't put our major girls in the best events because I wanted them to get the chance to race," Taylor said. "We swim such a demanding schedule that they rarely get a chance to swim in anything other than their best events. We got the chance to do that today. I was pleased with what we saw."
The Cougars notched their first win of the day in the 3 x 50-yard butterfly relay. Kells, Eeson and Moira Fraser teamed up to post a time of 1:20.09. Freshmen Colleen Donovan and Emma Nelson joined Hillis to finish third (1:24.07).
The following event witnessed the performance from Newcomb that had Lewis spoke proudly of, as the junior swam the 200-yard breaststroke in 2:27.15 to take fourth. Pisarski followed closely behind in fifth (2:29.91). Freshman Leah Sanchez rounded out the Cougar swimmers with an eighth-place finish.
Blumenthal, Ballo and Fraser took second in the 3 x 50-yard backstroke relay while Newcomb, Sanchez and Morrell followed right behind in third.
Kovacs took over in the next event, busting Rice's pool record and setting her own in the 200-yard butterfly. Her time of 2:05.34 broke the pool record by more than two seconds. Eeson's 2:11.24 was the next Cougar to tap in, putting her in fourth. Nelson and Donovan finished 10th and 11th, respectively.
Hillis, Pisarski and Kovacs came out on top of an exciting 3 x 50-yard breaststroke relay, besting Rice's trio by less than half a second with their mark of 1:32.27. Sanchez, Newcomb and Kells came out in fourth (1:45.03).
Ballo set the pace in the next event, posting a third-place finish in the 200-yard backstroke with her 2:10.24. Blumenthal took sixth with a 2:18.
In the 3 x 100-yard backstroke relay, Hillis, Kovacs and Eeson put together a second-place finish (3:05.15) while Newcomb, Kells and Donovan finished in third. With Taylor wanting to keep his swimmers out of their best races, Kovacs did not race in the 400-yard IM. Hillis and Nelson stepped up in her place, finishing seventh and 13th, respectively.
The schedule of the day's events seemed to save the best for last as the final event provided a thrilling conclusion. The Cougars claimed first in the 400-yard freestyle relay against Rice's top relay squad. Eeson's record-breaking first leg set the tone for the remainder of the race. Kells took the second leg and Fraser the third to make way for Kovacs to finish it up. Together the ladies posted a time of 3:33.38. Morrell, Blumenthal, Ballo and Donovan nabbed fifth place.
With the season opener close at hand, Taylor can see his team becoming poised and ready for their Oct. 22 meet at SMU.
"Our focus is shifting now to the real competitive start of the season," Taylor said. "We'll get to face Rice again three or four more times this season, but now our focus is even more clear."
Players Mentioned
