Pleasant Prairie, Wis. -- The race for this year's CCIW Women's Swimming & Diving Championship is coming down to the wire, as the Wheaton squad boasted strong performances on Friday to close the gap at the top of the standings to a single point. Augustana continues to lead the way with a total of 512.5, but the Thunder are just behind them on 511.5 points. The competition has all the makings of a two-horse race, as Carthage College trails Wheaton in third place by nearly 100 points. The relay events proved to be Wheaton's major advantages today, as the Thunder won the 200 yard medley and 800 yard freestyle, as well as both races' B finals, to trim Augie's lead atop the table.
Abby Pardridge and
Katie Yonan also secured solo titles to ensure that Friday's headlines belonged to the Thunder.
The day's schedule began in perfect fashion for the Thunder women, as Pardridge,
Elli Bennett,
Scottie McKeaney, and
Sophie Pelling combined to capture top spot in the 200 yard medley relay. The B final also saw a Wheaton victory, with
Savannah Jeffrey,
Avery McKeaney,
Carolyn Bubar, and
Madison Harris teaming up to add 16 points to the Thunder's overall score. Not satisfied with a sweep on the front end, Wheaton then won both the A and B finals of the day-ending 800 yard freestyle event, as well.
Scottie McKeaney, Pelling,
Olivia Wiebe, and Yonan joined forces to top the podium in the A final, before
Gloria Coleman, Harris,
Louise Adams, and
Emily Hahn did the same by an impressive five-second margin in the B final.
Pardridge notched the first individual event win for the Thunder today, besting the field in her 100 yard butterfly race to collect 20 points for the team. Bubar came in third place in the same competition to contribute another 16 points. Yonan then won the next event on the women's side, taking first place in the 200 yard freestyle by nearly a three-second margin to claim her second individual title of the weekend. Relay teammate
Sophie Pelling swam to a third-placed finish in the same race via a narrow .07 second margin. (
podium ceremony pictured at right)
Elli Bennett earned a third place medal in her 100 yard breaststroke competition to tally another 16 points to the Wheaton cause before their relay triumph at the end of Friday's program.
The 2022-23 season will conclude for the Thunder swim teams on Saturday, as the last day of the CCIW Championships takes place. Tomorrow's finals are scheduled for 6:00 PM in Pleasant Prairie. The Wheaton women's team will attempt to overtake reigning champions Augustana at the finish line to claim their first conference crown in six years.
