McQuaid, Yoshida, O'Rourke, Rice Win Weekly Awards
MAAC Sports
Edison, NJ - Loyola’s Sam McQuaid and Fairfield’s Michelle Yoshida were selected as Men’s and Women’s Swimmers of the week, respectively. Ian O’Rourke of Niagara was selected Men’s Diver of the Week, while Siena’s Elizabeth Rice wins the women’s honor.
McQuaid set a Loyola school record in the first meet of the season, dropping 0.39 off his previous mark in the 100-yard backstroke. The sophomore won the event against Boston College, Navy and Catholic, clocking a time of 51.72 to finish over a full second faster than the second-place competitor. McQuaid also was second in the 200-yard individual medley and the 200-yard backstroke. He was a part of the Greyhounds’ 200-yard medley relay team that opened the meet with a time of 1:33.25 ? now second all-time at Loyola ? that was just two one-hundredths off the school record.
Freshman Yoshida had a solid weekend for the Stags capturing two individual events and a relay while setting a program record. In the Stags’ win over Saint Peter’s on Oct. 17, she broke the women’s 50m freestyle record with a winning time of 27:06. Yoshida was also the lead leg of the winning 200m medley relay that had a time of 2:07.20 which was less than a second off of the record, and also was the anchor on the 200m freestyle relay that posted a time of 1:54.36 which was three-tenths of a second off of the school record. At the William McCarthy Invitational on Oct. 20, she captured the 50-yard fly with a time of 27.65 seconds.
Yoshida began her rookie campaign by winning two individual events and a relay at Holy Cross. She won the 200m free in a time of 1:58.62 and the 100 free in a time of 55.15 second. She was also a member of the 200 freestyle relay which finished in a time of 1:41.59. In addition, she was the anchor on the second-place 400 medley relay that had a time of 4:13.41.
O’Rourke has had a great start to his sophomore season. He snapped his own 1-meter, 11-dive school record of 451.14 with a new mark of 480, while his 3-meter board score went from 441.80 to 494.80. O’Rourke jumped over 28 points in both events. O’Rourke would claim the last Niagara diving record that wasn’t his in the 3-meter, 6-dive event against Fredonia St., as he shattered the old mark of 283.42 with a score of 307.15.
Siena freshman diver Rice had a strong performance in her first collegiate meet, posting high scores against a seasoned New Hampshire diving squad. Rice scored a 214.05 on the 1-meter board, narrowly missing the school record in that event. She concluded the afternoon with another solid score of 189.83 in the 3-meter event.
The 2009 MAAC Swimming and Diving Championships will be held February 12-14 at Loyola College in Baltimore, MD.