GENEVA, N.Y. – The William Smith College swimming & diving team hosted RIT on Saturday in Bristol Pool to close out its regular season. The Herons fell to the Tigers 220-80 despite strong efforts on Senior Day.
To kick off the meet, Tori Smith, Lea Emanuel, Hali Seidberg, and Jayne Pearson led the Herons to a second-place finish in the Women's 200-yard medley relay. Of that relay team, three Herons had four combined top-three finishes in other events.
First-Year Mackenzie Morus raced to a second-place finish in the 1000-yard freestyle, stopping the clock at 11:29.02, just under four seconds behind RIT's first-place finisher, Sydney DeLapp. Morus finished third in the 100-yard butterfly, 0.25 seconds behind teammate Hali Seidberg. She closed out the day with another second-place finish in the 100-yard breastroke.
Seidberg's second place finish in the 50-yard butterfly was just under one second quicker than the third-place finisher, sophomore Abigail Hark.
On senior day, the Herons lone senior, Clare Burke, put on a performance in the 200-yard freestyle, finishing in third with a time of 2:09.13. She was just two seconds shy of second place. She also finished second in the 100-yard freestyle race, with a time of 59.33.
Sophomore Ella Rati led the Herons on the diving board, finishing third in the 1-meter dive with a score of 199.30.
COACHES CORNER
"We had a fantastic meet on both sides," said Head Coach R.C. Weston. "With a growing program you must go up against a level of competition that you strive to build towards. Regardless of the score, there were plenty of events today that we went stroke for stroke against one of the best teams in the country. I have said it many times this season, I am just so incredibly proud of how this team has come together and has learned how to battle. We are showing a level of toughness and ability to persevere that I have not seen before. It's a testament to how hard this team works day in and day out, and if we keep believing in us, the sky is the limit for this program. We are going to push through one more week of tough training, with our eyes set on our big goals at Liberty Leagues."
UP NEXT
The Herons will take the next two weeks to prepare for the Liberty League Championships hosted in Ithaca, N.Y. February 21-24.
