2022 MAC women's swimming & diving championship recap

DAY 1

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio -- (NewsLink) Akron finished just seven points behind MAC champions Buffalo in last year’s MAC Championship. If the first night of the 2022 meet is any indication, the Zips are back with a vengeance. 

Akron won both events held on night one: the 200 Medley and 800 Free Relays. In the medley, the Zips leaned on star senior Sarah Watson who threw down a 22.96 fly split, 7 tenths faster than anyone else in the field. 

In the 800, Akron again leaned on Watson, who led the team off 1:45.18. Both relays went faster than the winning times from the 2021 meet, both from Buffalo. 

Watson’s time would have also been a new MAC record in the 200 free, if it hadn’t been for Miami’s Nicole Maier. The Redhawk junior blasted her way to a 1:44.90, shattering the previous conference record of 1:45.36 held by Eastern Michigan’s Madeleine Pilchard since 2008. The record was the oldest swim record in the books, a title than now falls to Briana Emig’s (EMU) 1650 record from 2011. 

Summary by the Numbers 

(Bold print denotes a school record) 

200 Medley Relay 

1. Akron – 1:37.28 

2. Buffalo – 1:37.58 

3. Miami – 1:38.53 

4. Bowling Green – 1:39.02 

5. Ball State – 1:40.01 

6. Eastern Michigan – 1:40.74 

7. Ohio – 1:40.90 

8. Toledo – 1:46.15 

800 Free Relay 

1. Akron – 7:07.09 

2. Buffalo – 7:12.75 

3. Miami – 7:14.34 

4. Ohio – 7:17.63 

5. Eastern Michigan – 7:20.68 

6. Toledo – 7:22.52 

7. Bowling Green – 7:23.38 

8. Ball State – 7:23.86 

Team Scores Following Night 1: 

1. Akron – 80 

2. Buffalo – 68 

3. Miami – 64 

4 (TIE). Ohio – 54 

- Bowling Green – 54 

- Eastern Michigan – 54 

7. Ball State – 50 

8. Toledo – 48 

Prelims for Day 2 Will begin at 10:30. Events include the 500 Free, 200 IM, 50 Free, 1 mtr. Diving, and the 200 Free Relay.

DAY 2

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (NewsLink) —Akron continues to put on a show at the 2022 Mid-American Conference Championships at Bowling Green State University. The Zips won three of the five events contested on Day 2, including their third relay victory of the meet. They hold a commanding 84 point lead over reigning champs Buffalo only one day into the meet. 

The night began with a dominant win by Miami’s Nicole Maier in the 500 Freestyle. Despite being well off her personal best, the current MAC record of 4:39.96, she won by nearly half a pool length. Maier finished in a 4:44.19, six seconds ahead of second place Gail Workman. That is the third MAC title in Maier’s career and the time marked a new Cooper Pool record. 

In the 200 IM, Sarah Watson of Akron completed her 4-peat, winning in 1:56.86. The time, like Maier’s, was just off her own conference and meet record. Akron claimed four of the top five spots in the event, as Bowling Green’s Daisy Platts was the only non-zip to crack the top 5. 

In the 50, Paulina Nogaj returned after a year away to claim the title in a new personal best of 22.37. That was a drop of over half a second from her morning swim. 

In the first diving final, Tori Franz of Buffalo eked out the win with 318.75 score. That score, good for a pool record, was enough to edge out Eastern Michigan’s Bethany Berger, who put up a 315.30. 

The final event of the session, the 200 Free Relay was a barnburner. Nogaj, fresh off her win in the 50, clocked a 22.44 leadoff leg for Akron’s relay who won in 1:28.98. The time marked a new pool record, as a new record has been set every event of these championships. 

Summary by the Numbers 

500 Free 

1. Nicole Maier (MIOH) 

2. Gail Workman (AKRN) 

3. Marij van der Mast (BUFF) 

4. Kellie House (BGSU) 

5. Emma Fortman (OHIO) 

6. Erin Szczupakiewicz (MIOH) 

7. Jovana Duric (TOL) 

8. Brooke Lamoureux (AKRN) 

200 IM 

1. Sarah Watson (AKRN) 

2. Abby Daniel (AKRN) 

3. Daisy Platts (BGSU) 

4. Olivia Gardner (AKRN) 

5. Weronicka Gorecka (AKRN) 

6. Gabrielle Brust (OHIO) 

7. Lauren Kilgore (TOL) 

8. Andrea Fischer (AKRN) 

50 Free 

1. Paulina Nogaj (AKRN) 

2. Toni Naccarella (BUFF) 

3. Jill Lawton (BUFF) 

4. Rachel Schiffli (AKRN) 

5. Sawyer Bosley (BUFF) 

6. Honor Brodie-Foy (MIOH) 

7. Sofia Henell (AKRN) 

8. Katie Shoen (EMU) 

1M Diving 

1. Tori Franz (BUFF) 

2. Bethany Berger (EMU) 

3. Camryn Hughes (EMU) 

4. Paige Kalik (AKRN) 

5. Keira Veltigian (EMU) 

6. Mari Kwak (BUFF) 

7. Grace Ellis (BGSU) 

8. Rebekah Knapp (EMU) 

200 Free Relay 

1. Akron 

2. Buffalo 

3. Miami 

4. Ball State 

5. Ohio 

6. Toledo 

7. Bowling Green 

8. Eastern Michigan 

Team Scores Following Day 2 

1. Akron – 312.5 

2. Buffalo – 228.5 

3. Eastern Michigan - 168 

4. Miami – 153.5 

5. Bowling Green - 134 

6. Ohio - 132 

7. Toledo – 107 

8. Ball State – 92.5 

Prelims for Day 3 begin at 10:30 a.m. Events include the 100 Fly, 400 IM, 200 Free, 100 Breast, 100 Back, 3M Diving prelims, and the 400 Medley Relay.

DAY 3

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (NewsLink) -- If there has been a trend at the 2022 Mid-American Conference Swimming and Diving Championships, it has been that this meet is fast. That trend definitely stuck on Day 3, as five pool records, two MAC Championship records, and two MAC Conference records all fell today. 

The first event was a clash of the titans featuring 50 Free champ Paulina Nogaj of Akron and her teammate, 200 IM champ Sarah Watson going head to head in the 100 Fly. Watson is the reigning MAC champ in the event and the MAC record holder. Nogaj is also a previous MAC champ in the event from the 2020 championships. In prelims, Nogaj hit 51.97 to set the Cooper Pool record and take the top seed, while Watson qualified second. The two would both add slightly in the final with Nogaj wresting her title back in 52.58. Akron swept the podium with freshman Abby Daniel added a third place finish. 

With that warm-up, fans were then treated to the performance of the night. After winning the 500 Free in pool record time last night, Miami’s Nicole Maier downed the pool, meet, and conference record on her way to victory in the 400 IM. Maier’s time of 4:08.94 shattered her own meet and conference record set at last year’s championships by over 2 seconds. Maier was in a tight battle with Akron’s Olivia Gardner who actually led at the half-way mark. Maier then out-split Gardner 1:10.7 to 1:14.7 on the breast leg and 56.09 to 59.39 on the free leg to win by six and a half seconds. 

The 200 Free featured the first new MAC champion of the meet in Buffalo’s Sawyer Bosley. The Buffalo freshman came home in 27.1, far and away the fastest last split in the field to win in 

1:46.94. The event was the first final of the meet to not feature a new pool record, as Maier’s time leading off the 800 Free Relay on Day 1 still holds that disctinction. McKenzie Grau placed second to earn Ohio’s first podium finish of the meet. 

After the 200 Free, it was right back to pool record times as Buffalo’s Katie Pollock dipped under the 1 minute mark for the first time to win in 59.92. Pollock was the only swimmer in the field under 1:01, but second place through eighth were separated by a mere 1.2 seconds. This is Pollock’s second consecutive 100 breast title. 

In the 100 back, it was another repeat champion as Bowling Green’s Daisy Platts completed the three-peat. Platts’ time of 52.13 in prelims set a new pool record by over two and a half seconds. She would finish just off that in finals, but easily ahead of the field for the win. In fact, this event was so fast top to bottom that each of the top nine finishers broke the previous pool record. Platts joins Pollock (100 breast), Maier (500 Free, 400 IM), and Watson (200 IM) as repeat champions. 

After a long break for the 3M diving consolation finals, the night ended with the 400 Medley relay. Unfortunately, splits were not available for the race, but Akron was on a tear. The squad finished in 3:31.67, over a second faster than previous MAC record and five seconds clear of second place Buffalo. That marks Akron’s fourth relay win of the meet, and they will have a chance to complete the relay sweep tomorrow night. 

Akron carries a massive 173 point lead heading into the final day. 

Summary by the Numbers 

(Bold text denotes school record, Italics denotes pool record) 

100 Fly 

1. Paulina Nogaj (AKRN) 

2. Sarah Watson (AKRN) 

3. Abby Daniel (AKRN) 

4. Jill Lawton (BUFF) 

5. Clarice Fisher (BUFF) 

6. Gabrielle Brust (OHIO) 

7. Honor Brodie-Foy (MIOH) 

8. Hannah Jones (BALL) 

400 IM 

1. Nicole Maier (MIOH) 

2. Olivia Gardner (AKRN) 

3. Riley Hofmann (EMU) 

4. Gail Workman (AKRN) 

5. Ava Vial (BGSU) 

6. Kendall Craig (AKRN) 

7. Morgan Croaning (OHIO) 

8. Abby Szadorski (EMU) 

200 Free 

1. Sawyer Bosley (BUFF) 

2. McKenzie Grau (OHIO) 

3. Toni Naccarella (BUFF) 

4. Sofia Henell (AKRN) 

5. Victoria Kaufman (AKRN) 

6. Emma Fortman (OHIO) 

7. Mia Naccarella (BUFF) 

8. Marij van der Mast (BUFF) 

100 Breast 

1. Katie Pollock (BUFF) 

2. Paula Garcia (AKRN) 

3. Andrea Fischer (AKRN) 

4. Alex Bader (BALL) 

5. Madeline Dyer (AKRN) 

6. Laura Wright (BALL) 

7. Taylor Harris (BGSU) 

8. Edie Sawyer (OHIO) 

100 Back 

1. Daisy Platts (BGSU) 

2. Madelyn Gatrall (AKRN) 

3. Weronika Gorecka (AKRN) 

4. Mia Naccarella (BUFF) 

5. Madeline Padavic (MIOH) 

6. Angelina Cakuls (MIOH) 

7. Lauren Cooper (AKRN) 

8. Hannah Jones (BALL) 

400 Medley Relay 

1. Akron 

2. Buffalo 

3. Miami 

4. Bowling Green 

5. Ohio 

6. Eastern Michigan 

7. Toledo 

- Ball State - DQ 

Team Scores Through Day 3 

1. Akron - 594.5 

2. Buffalo - 421.5 

3. Miami - 289.5 

4. Eastern Michigan - 247 

5. Ohio - 243 

6. Bowling Green - 217 

7. Ball State - 155.5 

8. Toledo - 149 

Prelims for begin at 10:30 a.m. The events include 200 Back, 100 Free, 200 Breast, 200 Fly, 3M Diving Finals, and the 400 Free Relay.

DAY 4

BOWLING GREEN, Ohio (NewsLink) -- The Akron Zips were dominant on the last day of the 2022 Mid-American Conference Swimming and Diving Championship to clinch an overwhelming victory. The Zips won five of the six events on the night to take back their title after having their win streak broken last year. Buffalo, last year’s champs finished a distant second as Akron swept all five relays. 

The night began with the longest event, the 1650 Free. Gail Workman of Akron used a strong back half to win 16:42.05. This along with the 200 Free were the only individual events to not feature a new pool record (Nicole Maier did break the 200 Free pool record leading off the 800 Free Relay on Night 1). 

The 200 Back featured what was perhaps the upset of the meet. Akron junior Weronicka Gorecka claimed the title in a pool record 1:53.89. In doing so, she knocked off three-time defending champ Daisy Platts, who was 2 seconds off her best time. Gorecka was also a champion on Akron’s 800 Free Relay. 

If last night’s 100 Fly showdown between Paulina Nogaj and Sarah Watson was a clash of the titans, the 100 Free was a knock, down, drag out brawl. 200 IM champ Sarah Watson, Miami’s double-champ Nicole Maier, and reigning champ, Buffalo’s Toni Naccarella met in the middle three lanes. Watson and Maier traded places multiple times throughout the race with Naccarella trailing close behind. Watson managed to hit the wall one hundredth ahead of Maier, 48.70 to 48.71. Naccarella finished four tenths back in third. 

In the 200 Breast, Akron managed to sweep the top four spots. Defending champ Andrea Fischer held on to her title in pool record time, 2:10.68. Behind her, Paula Garcia, Madeline Dyer, and Sara Bozso topped off the rest of the podium. 

In the 200 Fly, Akron’s Paulina Nogaj won her third individual title of the meet. She slid under her prelim swim and pool record from this morning. She faced tough competition throughout the race from Eastern Michigan’s Riley Hofmann, but pulled away on the last 50. 

Tori Franz of Buffalo swept both boards at the meet, setting a new pool record on 3-meter tonight. She once again finished just ahead of Eastern Michigan’s Bethany Berger, this time by four points. 

To close out the meet, Akron finished their sweep of the relays at this meet. They clocked a 3:16.54, holding off a late push from Buffalo for the win. Akron, as has been the trend this meet, downed the pool record, the 18th of 20 possible pool records. 

The Zips finished 277 points ahead of second place Buffalo. Bowling Green also moved up two spots, the only team to move up more than one place. 

Summary by the Numbers 

(Bold text denotes school record, Italics denotes pool record) 

1650 Free 

1. Gail Workman (AKRN) 

2. Kellie House (BGSU) 

3. Jovana Duric (TOL) 

4. Brooke Lamoureux (AKRN) 

5. Savanna Mouat (EMU) 

6. Marcella Ribiero (BALL) 

7. Morgan Croaning (OHIO) 

8. Katheryn Antonowich (MIOH) 

200 Back 

1. Weronicka Gorecka (AKRN) 

2. Daisy Platts (BGSU) 

3. Madelyn Gatrall (AKRN) 

4. Olivia Gardner (AKRN) 

5. Abbey Malmstrom (BUFF) 

6. Maddy McDonough (BUFF) 

7. Angelina Cakuls (MIOH) 

8. Emily Rinker (MIOH) 

100 Free 

1. Sarah Watson (AKRN) 

2. Nicole Maier (MIOH) 

3. Toni Naccarella (BUFF) 

4. Honor Brodie- Foy (MIOH) 

5. Sofia Henell (AKRN) 

6. Sawyer Bosley (BUFF) 

7. Kennedy Lovell (TOL) 

8. Jill Lawton (BUFF) 

200 Breast 

1. Andrea Fischer (AKRN) 

2. Paula Garcia (AKRN) 

3. Madeline Dyer (AKRN) 

4. Sara Bozso (AKRN) 

5. Katie Pollock (BUFF) 

6. Alexandra Spaczay (MIOH) 

7. Laura Wright (BALL) 

8. Julia Strine (OHIO) 

200 Fly 

1. Paulina Nogaj (AKRN) 

2. Riley Hofmann (EMU) 

3. Abby Daniel (AKRN) 

4. Gabrielle Brust (OHIO) 

5. Clarice Fisher (BUFF) 

6. Ali Staver (EMU) 

7. Erin Szczupakiewicz (MIOH) 

8. Fabiana D’Ambrogio (BGSU) 

3M Diving 

1. Tori Franz (BUFF) 

2. Bethany Berger (EMU) 

3. Paige Kwalik (AKRN) 

4. Rayah Blood (BGSU) 

5. Halli Siwik (OHIO) 

6. Joelle Gallais (TOL) 

7. Mari Kwak (BUFF) 

8. Ashleigh Provan (BALL) 

400 Free Relay 

1. Akron 

2. Buffalo 

3. Miami 

4. Toledo 

5. Ohio 

6. Ball State 

7. Bowling Green 

8. Eastern Michigan 

Final Team Scores: 

1. Akron 

2. Buffalo 

3. Miami 

4. Ohio 

5. Eastern Michigan 

6. Bowling Green 

7. Ball State 

8. Toledo

Summary of awards coming soon. Contact Philip Choroser with any questions or comments at pechoroser@bsu.edu.