Jan. 9, 2010
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Casey Matthews bettered the Boilermaker Aquatic Center record in the 3-meter Saturday as the 22nd-ranked Purdue women's swimming and diving team completed a 216-142 victory over Michigan State.
"It was great to have Michigan State here for three days," head coach John Klinge said. "This was an opportunity for them to get off campus and for us to compete, with the two relays on the first night, the same way we will start the Big Ten Championships here in six weeks. I thought this was a great tribute to our graduating seniors. The spirit and effort of the team was great and was a great way for our seniors to finish out their home dual-meet careers."
Matthews, a sophomore from Getzville, N.Y., continued the see-saw battle with senior Ashley Karnes for the Boilermaker Aquatic Center facility record in the 3-meter competition. Matthews, who broke Karnes' record Nov. 7 and was bettered by her on Nov. 20, scored 380.10 points to break the previous record of 370.20. Matthews' score also moves her to second on Purdue's all-time performance list behind Karnes' program record of 383.35. Matthews also finished fifth after scoring 246.68 in the 1-meter.
"My goal was just to dive the best I could," Matthews said. "I went in staying calm and focused, and I didn't actually notice until the end of my last dive that I broke it. It felt pretty good. It's a great feeling. The battle is exciting. Ashley is a beautiful, talented diver and to go back and forth with her is challenging and exciting. I think we are both having fun."
Junior Erin Mertz won the 1-meter competition with her score of 294.08 and finished second in the 3-meter with her 316.35 score. Karnes was second in the 1-meter after putting 290.55 on the board and fourth in the 3-meter after scoring 261.68. Junior Kara Cook placed third in the 3-meter with a score of 281.48 and seventh in the 1-meter.
In the day's opening event, junior Ariel Martin won the 50-yard freestyle in 23.16 seconds. She was immediately followed by classmate Lisa Butler in a season-best time of 23.45. Freshman Lauren Gustafson also placed in the scoring with her fifth-place, 24.40 finish. Martin also claimed victory in the 100 butterfly as she finished in a season-best time of 56.79.
Freshman Courtney Tumbush earned the first win of her young collegiate career when she touched the wall in 4:36.92 to better the 400 IM field. Butler grabbed her second 200 freestyle victory this season by swimming a season-best time of 1:49.88. Sophomore Amy Gutwein also added a season-best time in that race when she touched the wall in 1:54.34.
Sophomore Kristen Gilson won the 200 backstroke with her 2:02.27 time. Freshman Seraphina Van added another win to the pile when she outraced the 200 breaststroke field and finished in 2:20.92. Sophomore Lauren Roth continued the winning in the 500 freestyle as the Carrollton, Texas, native touched the wall in 4:52.86. In that same race, junior Jessica Skiba recorded a season-best time of 5:02.98.
In the day's only relay, Purdue added 13 more points to the team total. Allie Smith, Van, Elizabeth Holmes and Butler won the race in 3:31.33, and Sara Bogert, Leah Henninger, Lopez and Roth finished third with a time of 3:34.65. Senior Christine Inman finished third in the 100 butterfly with her 58.05 clocking and was followed immediately by junior Mary-Margaret Lopez in 58.08.
The Boilermakers defeated Michigan State for the 19th straight time and now lead the all-time series 24-8. Purdue returns to action Jan. 23 when the team travels to face No. 12 Indiana.