The LSU swim team traveled to Chapel Hill, N.C. last weekend to the Nike Cup Invitational which marked the end of the fall season for the team.
The women’s team beat out Kentucky, Syracuse, East Carolina, North Carolina State and Kenyon to finish fifth at the event with 281 points.
North Carolina won the women’s competition with a total of 884 points, while Michigan took second place followed by Clemson and Virginia Tech.
The men’s team came out seventh with 241 points ahead of Kenyon, N.C. State and East Carolina.
Tennessee dominated the men’s competition with 971 points. North Carolina and Clemson took second and third with 595 and 545 points, respectively.
“We did quite well,” said LSU assistant coach Amanda Norton.
Norton said some of the other teams were more rested than the Tigers.
“A few [swimmers] had been sick, so we weren’t sure what to expect,” Norton said.
She said several Tigers did finish with personal best times, however.
Jan Minartz finished the men’s 1,650-yard freestyle in 15:46.94 to take sixth place in the event, while Myles Jaynes followed close behind in ninth place with a time of 15:53.88.
LSU assistant coach Lars Jorgensen holds the Nike Cup record from 1992 with a time of 15:04.58 in the 1,650-yard freestyle.
Lindsay Staak finished first in the consolation finals for the women’s 200-yard backstroke with a time of 2:04.36.
Staak said she is happy with her performance but feels she needs to get stronger in order to improve her time.
The team went into the Nike Cup still missing two of its top swimmers, Evan Martinec and Stephanie Smith. Smith is out with a neck injury and was unable to defend her 2002 Nike Cup victory in the 1,650-yard freestyle.
Staak said she is hoping Martinec and Smith can return soon, as she believes they contribute greatly to the team.
“You can’t control injuries,” Staak said. “It’s frustrating because you want the team to do well but you understand.”
In the women’s 100-yard freestyle, LSU’s Donna Leslie finished in 51.61 to take third place in the event while freshman Colleen Bertirotti finished the event in 51.96 to place sixth.
Senior team captain Chris Stanczyk finished fifth in the men’s 100-yard freestyle finals with a time of 45.75 while Jan Minartz finished third in the event’s consolation final, touching the wall in 45.93.
Norton said Stanczyk’s performance earned him an NCAA “B” cut qualification.
“Both [Stanczyk and Minartz] have a good chance to compete in NCAA’s,” Jorgensen said. “Chris has a little more speed. Jan’s the most versatile freestyle swimmer that we have. Both could be national caliber swimmers. The key for both of them is to work hard over the holidays.”
In the women’s 200-yard breaststroke, Lauren Harvey took the victory in the finals with a time of 2:18.53.
Margot Gathings finished the 200-yard butterfly in 2:04.43 to take third in the finals of the event.
LSU’s women’s 400-yard freestyle relay team of Lauren Harvey, Margaret Beadle, Colleen Bertirotti and Donna Leslie combined efforts to take third place in the event while the men’s relay team of Ross Hebert, Jan Minartz, Neil Lowe and Chris Stanczyk also took third in the event.
The diving team traveled to Minneapolis for the Minnesota Invitational last weekend.
Freshman Alyson Carlyon qualified for the NCAA Zone Diving Regionals with her performance in the 3-meter competition. Carlyon had a score of 452.50 in the event finals to take fifth place.
Freshman Hali Saucier finished third in the semifinals of the 3-meter competition after earning a score of 420.70.
For the men, freshman Andy Crum finished fifth in the 1-meter event with a score of 260.25, while Andrew Keane took eighth place in the finals of the 1-meter with 234.95 points.