February 16, 2008

BRYANT WOMEN SWIM THEIR WAY INTO FIRST PLACE AFTER DAY 1 OF THE NEW ENGLAND CHAMPIONSHIPS

NORTH DARTMOUTH, MASS. -- After a strong showing in Day 1 of the New England Women's Swimming and Diving Championships -- highlighted by a pair of first-place finishes from sophomore standout Jess Looney (Goffstown, NH) -- the Bryant University women's swim team leads the pack of 21 teams with 302 points entering Saturday's competition at UMass Dartmouth's Tripp Athletic Center Natatorium.

Looney, the undisputed leader of the Bulldog women throughout their undefeated regular season, set two new school records with her victories, first in the 200-yard backstroke in a time of 2:09.98, and later in the 200-yard individual medley, in 2:13.05. Looney also swam the second leg of both the 200-yard freestyle relay and the 400-yard medley relay, with both teams coming in third.

Other top-5 finishers on the day include freshman Jill Hira (Cheshire, Conn.), who finished the 500-yard freestyle in 5:22.39, good for third place, and rookie Jill Squillante (Sayville, NY), who took fourth in the 50-yard freestyle in a time of 26.12.

With the four individual and two relay top-5 finishes, the Bulldogs took a five-point edge away from Friday's competition, leading second-place Keene State College (297). The rest of the top-10 teams fall in as follows: Bentley College (285), Bridgewater State College (169.5), Eastern Connecticut State (165), University of New England (120), Saint Michael's (116), Westfield State (103), Roger Williams (99) and UMass Dartmouth (95). 

The top women's swimmers and divers from across New England compete in the annual NEISDA Championships, which run from Feb. 15-17, 2008. Check back to www.bryantbulldogs.com for more updates and information.