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GREENSBORO, N.C. - Sophomore Jackie Keire continued to etch her name into the conference record books, winning a third individual title to cap the final day of competition at the 2015 American Athletic Conference Swimming and Diving Championships.
The Cincinnati women finished the meet in fifth place, while the men concluded competition in fourth.
// KEIRE WINS THIRD TITLE
Jackie Keire (Burlington, Ont./Nelson) hit the hat trick on individual titles after winning the 100 freestyle. After successfully defending the 200 and 500 freestyle titles earlier in the week, Keire set her sights on a third gold medal.
The sophomore swam the quickest preliminary time in the 100 freestyle at 49.26 before going even quicker in the evening session to touch the wall in 48.44. That mark was a meet record, as well as a school record, topping Keire's own time from last year.
// BREADY TAKES MILE
Chris Bready (Missouri City, Texas/Lawrence E. Elkins) continued the success of the underclassmen by capturing an individual title in the mile. The freshman finished the 1,650 freestyle in 15:21.84 to win the race by nearly eight seconds.
// MYSZKA & WANASKE FINISH TOP-FIVE IN MILE
The Bearcats had a pair of swimmers finish among the top-five in the 1,650 freestyle. Sophomore Taylor Myszka (Dayton, Ohio/Centerville) placed third with a time of 17:01.13. Freshman Sara Wanasek (Burlington, Wis./Burlington) was the top freshman finisher, placing fifth overall with a time of 17:04.61.
// DEPIETRO PODIUMS IN 200 BUTTERFLY
One day after winning the conference title in the 400 individual medley, freshman Ryan DePietro (Lancaster, Ohio/Lancaster) landed another podium finish in the 200 butterfly. The rookie swam a preliminary time of 1:47.90 before touching the wall in 1:47.59 during the evening championship final to place third.
// OTHER HIGHLIGHTS
Jessica Piper (St. Petersburg, Fla./St. Petersburg) reached the championship final in the 200 backstroke thanks to a preliminary time of 2:01.50. The junior swam a finals time of 2:05.27 to place seventh overall.
Todd Brannon (Duluth, Ga./Norcross/Colorado School of Mines) earned a spot in the 200 backstroke finals after a morning time of 1:49.05. Brannon than posted an A-finals time of 1:47.94 to finish fifth.
A pair of Bearcats reached the championship final of the men's 100 freestyle. Eitan Holder (Caracas, Venezuela/Aviv (Israel)) placed in a tie for fourth overall after a preliminary time of 45.06 and a finals time of 44.71. Connor Davis (Cincinnati, Ohio/Anderson) was eighth thanks to a preliminary time of 45.42 and a finals time of 45.38.
Andrea Bartel (Euclid, Ohio/Euclid) placed fifth in the 200 breaststroke thanks to a preliminary time of 2:16.68 that allowed her to finish the final in 2:15.32.
Tyler Roehr (Cottage Grove, Wis./Monona Grove) led the way for a trio of Bearcats in the 200 breaststroke, placing fourth in 2:00.99 after a prelim time of 2:01.10. Nik Balmer (Rio Rancho, N.M./Rio Rancho) placed sixth thanks to a finals time of 2:02.59, while Cody Green (College Station, Texas/A&M Consolidated) was eighth in 2:04.92.
// 400 FREESTYLE RELAYS PLACE THIRD TO CAP MEET
The women's 400 freestyle relay placed third with a time of 3:23.29 thanks to senior Helena Pikhartova (Prague, Czech Republic/Gymnazium Jana Nerudy), freshmen Lindsey Niehaus (Cincinnati, Ohio/Seton) and Shelby Spitz (Carmel, Ind./Carmel) and anchored by Keire.
The Cincinnati men matched the performance in the final event of the meet after Holder, Davis, Hunter Pasek (Villa Hills, Ky./Covington Catholic) and Dean Waite (Hebron, Ky./Beechwood) placed third in 2:59.12.
// BEARCATS ON THE BOARD
With platform diving the final event off the board, Amanda Coffey (Beavercreek, Ohio/Beavercreek) performed best for UC with a score of 152.85 that was good for ninth. Mitch Beerse (Morrow, Ohio/Little Miami) was ninth with a mark of 182.35.
// UP NEXT
With a men's finish of fourth (642.50) and a women's finish of fifth (461), the Bearcats await to see if any swimmers qualify for the 2015 NCAA Swimming Championships. The women's event will be held March 19-21 in Greensboro, North Carolina, while the men's competition will be contested March 26-28 in Iowa City, Iowa.