Underclassmen Highlight Day 2 At MIAC Meet

MOORHEAD, Minn. (2/14/14)—A pair of underclassmen provided the highlights for Concordia at Day 2 of the MIAC Championship Meet. Sophomore Jana Hedstrom qualified for the finals in the 3-meter completion while freshman Libby Hardwick became the first Cobber swimmer to swim in an "A" or "B" final at the meet.

The duo and another solid effort by the Cobber relay crew helped Concordia slide into eighth place in the team standings. The Cobbers now have 93 total team points which is two points off their mark from last year after Day 2 at the conference meet.    

Hedstrom had posted the eighth best score in the first round of prelims in the 3-meter event on Thursday. She then qualified for the finals by recording a score of 358.10 in the semifinals on Friday morning. Hedstrom then came through with a seventh-place finish in the finals to post her second straight top 8 finish in a diving event at the MIAC Meet.  Last year she was seventh in the 1-meter competition.

Hardwick came through for Concordia in the 100-yard backstroke. She claimed the final spot in the "B" final by swimming a personal best 1:02.42 in the preliminary heat. Hardwick then clocked a 1:02.13 in the consolation final and finished in 16^th place. Her time is only .33 of a second off the school record set back in 2010.

The top Cobber relay on Day 2 was the 200-yard medley unit of Hardwick, Megan Obrecht, Madeline Johnson and Joleen Baker who raced to a 1:56.43 and earned the team's second podium finish of the meet by placing eighth. Their finishing time is 1.27 seconds off a program record.

Concordia finished up Day 2 by swimming an 8:30.03 in the 800-yard freestyle and placing ninth.

The Cobbers had a trio of swimmers post top 20 finishes in the prelims in the morning on Day 2. Freshmen Andrea Kittleson and Diana Kempenich and sophmore Obrecht all swam to 20^th-place finishes. Kittleson came home in 5:11.43 in the 400-yard individual medley while Kempenich swam a 1:08.57 in the 100-yard butterfly and Obrecht clocked a 1:12.21 in the 100-yard breaststroke. All three times were season bests for the athletes.

Concordia will finish off the 2014 conference meet on Saturday, Feb. 15 when they swim in the prelims at 10:30 a.m. with finals scheduled for 6:30 p.m. at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center.    

Women's Team Scores (after day two)
1. Gustavus - 596.5
2. St. Thomas - 449
3. St. Olaf - 340.5
4. Carleton - 253
5. Saint Benedict - 247
6. St. Catherine - 185
7. Macalester - 155
8. Concordia - 93
9. Augsburg - 83
10. Saint Mary's - 54
11. Hamline - 47