The Buffalo swimming and diving corps battled for local bragging rights in non-conference action over the weekend. The men and women's teams visited the Niagara Purple Eagles and left with a big confidence boost. The men swam to a resounding 148-89 win, while the women's team came out with a big 155-76 victory.
One thing the Bulls stressed during the meet was to treat the match as if it counted towards the Mid-American Conference (MAC) standings.
"Nothing changed," said head coach Andy Bashor when asked about the differences in the preparation for a meet against a non-conference opponent.
Bashor said that the women swam a lot of "off-events," but the team's intensity and mentality was the same as it would be in any other meet.
"Not to take away from Niagara, but the competition in the MAC is higher," he said.
The men (3-2) totaled nine first place finishes, with sophomores Scott Woster and Michael McDowell each tallying two individual wins. Woster took the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:00.99, and posted a time of 52.84 seconds in the 100-yard butterfly. McDowell swept the diving events from both the one-meter and three-meter boards.
Also with individual wins for the Bulls was freshman Brandon Beckinghausen with a time of 10:18.93 in the 1,000-yard freestyle, freshman Sterling Gell who finished the 100-yard backstroke in 58.27, and junior Richard Shi who swam the 500-yard freestyle in 4:56.74.
The men performed equally well in relay competition. The team of sophomores Andrew Tamchyna, Jordan Matthews, Woster and junior Kevin Schuster took the 200-yard medley, clocking-in at 1:39.74. Niagara (3-2) finished in second with a time of 1:40.26.
Beckinghausen, Shuster and Gell teamed up with sophomore Mark Ayers for a win in the 200-yard freestyle relay, finishing in 1:32.44. The Purple Eagles were not too far behind, hitting the wall in 1:32.96.
The women's team (4-4) received eight individual victories from eight different swimmers, four of which were freshmen. Catherine Scharf won the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 25.64, finishing just ahead of Elizabeth Piggott of the Purple Eagles (2-6). Alisa Koopman came up victorious in the 1,000-yard freestyle at 10:18.93, Ashley Olsen won the 100-yard backstroke in 1:02.49, and Jessie Koltz finished ahead of the pack in the 200-yard individual medley at 2:18.46.
Sophomores Jessica Ballard and Andrea Lehner registered winning times as well for the women's team. Ballard won the 500-yard freestyle in 5:20.28, while Lehner captured the 100-yard butterfly in 59.12.
Sophomore Meili Carpenter swept the diving events from both boards, while fellow sophomore Sam Palma cut five seconds from her previous personal best in the 200-yard freestyle. Palma won the event with a time of 1:57.95.
The Bulls also got a win from the combination of senior Andrea Scharf, Ballard, Lehner and Olsen in the 200-yard freestyle relay. The quartet made short work of the race, finishing in 1:42.90.
Bashor was happy with his squad's performance, but is ready to move on toward conference play.
"Dual meets are important, but they're not the main focus," Bashor said. "(In these meets) we just want make sure we're doing the little things right."
Bashor highlighted the importance of his team's preparation for the MAC championships in late February.
Both of Buffalo's swimming squads return to conference competition this weekend, doing battle with Ohio-based rivals.
The women are scheduled to swim at Akron on Friday at 5 p.m. Akron's women look to build on a solid 182-116 victory over Bowling Green last weekend.
"It's our first chance to win one on the road in awhile," Bashor said. "It's going to be great competition."
The men will play host to Miami (OH), which Bashor considers one of the top teams in the MAC. The RedHawks come to Buffalo looking to bounce back from a brutal 202-91 dual-meet beating at the hands of Purdue.
The men's meet will take place at Alumni Arena Natatorium on Saturday at 1 p.m.
Photo: Courtesy of Laron Fomby
