Buckeyes Host OSU Invitational – Ohio State Buckeyes
11/30/2005 12:00:00 AM | Women's Swim & Dive
Nov. 30, 2005
The Ohio State women’s swimming and diving team will open the Bill and Mae McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion to 12 universities for the Ohio State University Swimming and Diving Invitational. Taking place Friday-Sunday, each day will consists of preliminaries in the morning and finals in the evening or early afternoon. The meet has drawn six Big Ten schools and is expected to be a mini-preview of the 2006 Big Ten Championships, which will be hosted by Ohio State, Feb. 15-18.
Invite Information
The Ohio State University Swimming and Diving Invitational will feature 12 universities, including seven women’s swimming teams and 12 diving teams. Four of the attending teams are ranked in the College Swimming Coaches Association of America Top 25 poll. Friday’s sessions begin with swimming preliminaries at noon and diving qualifying at 2 p.m. Finals follow at 6 p.m. Saturday begins at 11 a.m. with swimming, followed by diving at 1 p.m. before finals at 6 p.m. The Invitational wraps up Sunday beginning at 10 a.m. with qualifying heats for swimming and the platform diving competition at noon. Finals are at 3 p.m. In both individual and relay events, the Top 16 finishers score points. The top-ranked relay team will score 40 points, while the fastest individual scores 20 points. At the event finals, three heats will be contested. There will be one 8-person heat, competing for first through eighth places. A second heat of 10 people will compete for 9th-16th place (1st-8th in the heat). The ninth and 10th-place finishers in that head do not score any points. There also will be a 10-person “bonus” heat that has no scoring. For a full schedule of events and directions to the McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion are available at ohiostatebuckeyes.com. Admission to every session is free.
Live Scoring
A complete listing of qualifiers, scoring and results will be available live on the women’s swimming and diving homepage at www.ohiostatebuckeyes.com.
Beard Earns Diver of the Week
Junior Anesa Beard was named Big Ten Diver of the Week for the week of Nov. 28 following a double-event win against Cleveland State. Beard won the 1-meter springboard event with a score of 263.55. Later, in the 3-meter event, she tallied a score 293.70, a season-best total for the Buckeyes. The double-event win was the second of the season for Beard. She also won both boards against Bowling Green, Nov. 3. The win on the 3-meter was Beard’s third, with a win over Michigan on Nov. 11.
High Marks
Three Buckeyes have recorded NCAA “B” cut times this season. Nicole Maglich, Gulsah Gunenc and Griet Buelens each recorded their time on Nov. 18. Maglich’s time of 1:50.21 came in the 200-yard freestyle. Gunenc and Buelens each paced the NCAA cut time in the 200-yard butterfly. Gunenc’s time was 2:01.55, while Buelens clocked a time of 2:00.19. After five dual meets this season, the Buckeyes have set numerous season best times each week. The Scarlet and Gray set nine total between the win over Kenyon and Cleveland State. Nicole Maglich holds the most season-best times, recording six times. Two of the times were recorded against the Vikings.
Ohio State Notches Two Wins
The Buckeyes recorded two wins in five days after defeating Kenyon, 116-89, Nov. 18, followed by Cleveland State, 145-65, Nov. 22. During the win over Kenyon, Ohio State won nine of 11 events and recorded three NCAA `B’ qualifying times. Nicole Maglich, Griet Buelens and Gulsah Gunenc each recorded a `B’ cut at the meet. Maglich’s mark came in the 200-yard freestyle event, while Buelens and Gunenc went 1-2 in the 200-yard butterfly and each hit the wall with the NCAA qualfying time. Five days later, the Buckeyes won every event and swept the top spots in both the 1,000-yard freestyle and the 200-yard individual medley. Anesa Beard went uncontested in the diving events and recorded a season-best score on the 3-meter springboard. Maglich, Buelens and Gunenc each won two events during the meet.
A New Home
Ohio State aquatics opened its new home- the Bill and Mae McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion. The building hosts the Mike Peppe Natatorium, a 50-meter world-class competition pool and the Ron O’Brien Diving Well. The new site also contains three additional pools, including practice pools for the team. Spectator seating, team locker rooms and new offices for the aquatic staff all compliment the main attractions. The facility is expected to draw in events on every level.
Home Pool Advantage
The new natatorium already has drawn in two championships for the 2005-06 season. Both the women’s 2006 Big Ten Championships and the 2006 NCAA Diving Regional Qualifying Championships will be held at the new home of Buckeye swimming and diving. The Big Ten championships, which will be held Feb. 15-18, will be the first time the Ohio State women’s team has hosted the event. The diving qualifying championships will be held three weeks later, March 10-12, and will host both male and female divers from all over the region. The qualifying championships are the final step for divers to qualify for the NCAA championships. The facility also will host the 2008 NCAA Championships.
Captains
Fleck has selected three swimmers to guide the team as captains. Senior Nicole Maglich, who won numerous events in dual-meets last season and competed at NCAA in three events, is expected to guide the team in the pool. Fellow senior Erin Greene has the honor of being named captain. Greene was voted most improved by the team last season and recorded times that were in the team’s Top 5 times of the season. Rounding out the trio is junior Stephanie Fennell. Fennell clocked the fastest time for the team in the 100-yard backstroke and the 200-yard individual medley.
Senior Leadership
Nicole Maglich and Erin Greene are joined by Morgan O’Connor and Natalie Bojko in representing the senior class. O’Connor set two personal-best times last season. Bojko also set her own personal-best times last season and was an Academic All-Big Ten honoree. “They’re all really good friends which helps them to be good leaders,” Fleck said. “They’ve just done a great job. They have helped build this program with their attitudes and their work ethics.”
The Schedule
The 2005-06 season will have many challenges. With the new pool come six home meets, including two double-dual meets. Four Big Ten opponents will be traveling to Columbus to receive a glimpse of the new surroundings before the conference championships. The team will travel twice during the season, opening the season on the road at Bowling Green and then heading to Minnesota toward the end of January. The postseason will begin at home with the Big Ten championships Feb. 15-18 and the Regional Qualifying diving championships March 10-12. Those who make the NCAA cut and are selected to attend the national meet will travel to Athens, Ga., March 16-18.
The Buckeyes Drop Two
The Buckeyes lost to both Michigan and Purdue Nov. 11 in their home pool. In the double-dual meet Ohio State fell to Purdue, 231-69, and lost to Michigan, 208.50-91.50. Gulsah Gunenc finished second in both the 100- and 200-yard butterfly, clocking in lifetime-best times in both events. Nicole Maglich also recorded a lifetime-best during the meet. Her time came in the 1,000-yard freestyle, which she hit at 9:59.80. Maglich finished third in the event then returned to finish second in the 500-yard freestyle. In the diving well, Anesa Beard combined six dives on the 1-meter event to place second.
All But One
Ohio State opened the 2005-06 season with a 171-124 win over the Bowling Green Falcons Nov. 3 in Cooper Pool. The Buckeyes won 15 of 16 events, including a double win in the diving well. Nicole Maglich and Gulsah Gunenc each won three events during the meet. Maglich claimed the 500- and 1,000-yard freestyle and the 100-yard backstroke events while Gunenc claimed her wins in the 100- and 200-yard butterfly and the 200-yard individual medley. Three Buckeyes, Griet Buelens, Rebekah Rychvalsky and Anesa Beard, each had double-wins during the meet, with Linda Lund claiming the 15th win in the 50-yard freestyle.
Coach Jeanne Fleck
Head women’s swimming coach Jeanne Fleck is in her seventh season at the helm of the Ohio State women’s swimming program. She has become accustomed to her teams displaying excellence in the water and in the classroom throughout her coaching career. Fleck has geared the Buckeyes to one school record and two pool records while getting her student-athletes to set personal bests almost every week. The Buckeyes had the highest grade point average in the Big Ten conference and was ranked ninth in the country during fall quarter last year. In five seasons, Fleck has had 36 Academic All-Big Ten selections and 73 OSU Scholar-Athletes.
About Coach Panzano
Vince Panzano is in his 27th season as coach of the Ohio State men’s and women’s diving teams. Panzano, who was named the 2004 Big Ten Diving Coach of the Year for the eighth time in his career, has produced one world champion, one junior world champion, two Olympic medalists, 22 U.S. Diving champions, ten NCAA champions, 14 NCAA runners-up, 45 Big Ten champions and 68 NCAA All-Americans.
Up Next
The Buckeyes return to action Jan. 13 following a break for the holidays when they play host to Marshall at 6 p.m. at the McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion.
