Nov. 21, 2009

Day Two Results

NORTHRIDGE, Calif. - After a successful first day, the Matadors began day two of the Toshiba Classic with high hopes and confidence.

Up first, both CSUN representatives in the men's 400 Individual Medley earned spots in finals, with freshman Jordan Harris placing 23rd in 4:10.64 and senior Jeff Raimondi placing 30th in 4:15.11.

Sprinter Nick Lao demonstrated his Butterfly abilities in the 100 with a time of 50.34, narrowly missing the CSUN school record of 50.00, set in 1977. Lao gave himself another chance at the record by qualifying in 12th place, and earning a spot in finals.

In the 200 Freestyle, top CSUN finisher Chris Grafton went out fast but faded in the final 50 yards to finish in 1:43.98, good for 12th place.

Despite ongoing injuries, junior Hank Weinberger touched in 52.26 in the 100 Backstroke, placing him 11th overall. Teammate Jimmy Rogers also earned a spot in finals with an 18th place finish in 53.58.

In the women's session, the ladies of CSUN proved they could qualify for second swims, just like the men.

Olesya Senicheva moved herself up to 3rd on the All-Time Top-Ten list of CSUN swims in the 400 Individual Medley, finishing in 4:30.34 and 17th place overall.

Next, it was Senicheva up once again, this time in the 100 Butterfly. The senior stole a spot in finals with a 30th place finish in 57.02. Despite qualifying for a second swim in the 100, Senicheva chose to focus on the 400 Individual Medley for the finals session, and dropped the Butterfly event from her finals agenda. Junior Yulia Gavrilova also qualified for finals touching in 56.23 for 17th place. The performance places Gavrilova 2nd on the All-Time Top-Ten list, just behind teammate and school record holder Senicheva.

The 100 Backstroke closed out the prelim session, with two Matador women finishing the morning on a high note. Gavrilova touched in 57.76, moving her up to 3rd on the All-Time Top-Ten list. The junior transfer qualified for finals but chose to focus on her 100 Butterfly, and opted out of a second swim in the 100 Backstroke. Breastroke specialist Kimmy Rashleigh branched out to clock a time of 58.24 in the Backstoke event, putting her 6th on the All-Time Top Ten list and 29th overall.

In the first event of the finals session, the women's 200 Medley Relay managed a 1:47.81 and 12th place finish. The men faired slightly better, winning their heat in a 1:35.01. The team of Weinberger, Matt Oldenhage, Lao, and Grafton narrowly out-touched Cal Baptist University, for an 8th place finish.

Two more Matadors broke into the Top-Ten list of CSUN swims in the 400 Individual Medley. Senicheva touched in a time of 4:28.01, placing her 2nd on the list, while Harris touched in 4:06.40, to break onto the list in 7th place. The Top-Ten swim was the first for the Rancho Cucamonga native.

In the 100 Butterfly, Gavrilova improved on her morning swim and won her heat in 56.10, for a 17th place finish overall. On the men's side, in what turned out to be the swim of the day, Lao crushed a 32-year-old school record, touching in 49.70. Lao's performance put him in 10th place overall. After the swim, Lao approached Head Coach Barry Schreifels happy but not satisfied.

"I'm proud of that, but I can do better," said Lao.

The 100 Backstroke was up next; Rashleigh fell just short of her time from the morning session, touching in 58.76 and 31st place. The men were able to repeat their performances from the morning with Weinberger finishing in 14th place with a 52.41, proving his prelim swim was no fluke. Sophomore Rogers touched in 53.76 for 18th overall.

The 800 Freestyle Relay rounded out the evening with the women placing 16th in a season-best 7:53.24. The men's relay also recorded a season-best, finishing in 6:58.76 and 8th overall.

The final day of competition will begin at 9:00am on Saturday, November 21st at the Belmont Plaza Pool in Long Beach.