A Tight Team Race Develops and Six New Records Fall on Day One
The first day of the highly anticipated 2024 CSCAA National Invitational Championship (NIC) concluded at the Florida Aquatics Swimming and Training (FAST) facility in Ocala, Florida.
March 14, 2024- The first day of the highly anticipated 2024 CSCAA National Invitational Championship (NIC) concluded at the Florida Aquatics Swimming and Training (FAST) facility in Ocala, Florida. The stage was set for an electrifying weekend of competition, with six records falling on the opening day.
In a neck-and-neck battle, the TCU women emerged with a slim half-point lead over Akron, tallying 199.5 to Akron's 199 points, respectively. Not far behind, Kentucky rounded off the top three with 193 points.
On the men’s front, Queens and TCU found themselves locked in a tie for first place with 257 points each, while Oakland secured the third spot with 213.5 points.
The first day witnessed an onslaught of record-breaking performances. Impressively, nine different institutions will bring home individual titles from this session.
Queens University claimed victory in both the men’s and women’s 200 Freestyle relays. The women clocked a time of 1:29.99, while their male counterparts seized gold with a time of 1:17.71.
Madeline Padavic of Miami (OH) set a new NIC record in the 50 Back at 24.27, while Alex Volkov of Grand Canyon won on the men’s side at 21.32.
Kentucky’s Libby Grether dominated the 500 Freestyle with a time of 4:42.59. Oakland got their first win of the meet with Jonas Cantrell taking the victory in a time of 4:21.48 on the men's side.
Queens swept the 50 Fly event with Maddie Foster touching at 24.01 and Matej Dusa setting a new NIC record of 21.09.
Iowa’s Olivia Swalley clinched gold in the 200 IM in a time of 1:58.47 in the women's race, while Geremia Frieri of TCU dominated the men's field with a record-breaking time of 1:44.64.
Sara Bozso of Akron showcased her strength with a record-breaking time of 27.72 in the women's 50 Breast. Joey Garberick of Ball State touched first in a time of 23.89.
Another Queen’s sweep came in the 50 Free. Danielle Melilli blazed her way to victory with a time of 22.46 in the women's race, while Matej Dusa grabbed his second gold of the night, setting a new record of 19.13 in the men's category.
UC-San Diego women and TCU men surged to victory in the 400 Medley relay, UCSD women touched in a time of 3:35.88. The TCU's men's team set a new record with a time of 3:09.62.
With the bar set high on day one, anticipation is at its peak as competition resumes on Friday. Preliminaries are set to kick off at 9:30 AM, followed by Finals at 6:00 PM. Day Two's events include the 200 Medley Relay (Finals only), 400 Individual Medley, 100 Butterfly, 200 Freestyle, 100 Breaststroke, 100 Backstroke, and the 800 Freestyle Relay.