BROWN DEER, Wis. (Blugolds.com) - It was another record-breaking day for the Blugolds, as the women's swimming & diving team shattered three conference records and five school records on the second day of the WIAC Championships.
Eau Claire maintained its third place ranking in the team standings with a point total of 516. Host UW-Stevens Point led with 544 points and UW-La Crosse followed closely with 531. In addition to the shattered records, the Blugolds also claimed three championship titles and nine top-five finishes.
Nicole Dorvinen (Jr.-Green Bay, Wis./Bay Port) won the title in the 400-yard individual medley with a time of 4:26.85, earning a DIII "A-cut." The quick time broke the 2009 WIAC record and bettered her own school record by nearly two seconds. Teammate Kirsten Lickel (Jr.-Madison, Wis./East) was also fast in the race, finishing third and earning a "B-cut."
Casey Preissel (Sr.-Wisconsin Dells, Wis.) was victorious in the 200-yard freestyle race. Her time of 1:52.24 also broke the conference mark and her own school record. The leading time also qualified as a DIII "B-cut."
The Blugolds also claimed the championship in the 800-yard freestyle relay, again breaking the WIAC and school records. Preissel, Megan Finley (Sr.-Waunakee, Wis.), Lickel and Dorvinen completed the event in just 7:37.08, another "B-cut" qualifier. The Blugold relay quartet of Finley, Julia Olson (Jr.-Faribault, Minn.), Emily Behrens (Fr.-Faribault, Minn.) and Preissel also set a new school record by finishing third in the 200-yard medley relay with a "B-cut" time of 1:46.88.
Behrens placed fifth in the 100-yard breaststroke, and she brought down a 31-year school record in the process. Her time of 1:06.90 surpassed the Eau Claire record of 1:07.97 set in 1980.
Eau Claire also had strong showings in the 100-yard butterfly and backstroke competitions. Finley and Sara Eggebrecht (So.-Abbotsford, Wis./Colby) finished third and fourth with respective times of 58.77 and 59.03 in the backstroke event. Finley's time surpassed the "B-cut" mark. In the 100 butterfly, Olson's time of 59.66 earned her a fifth place finish.
The Blugolds have one more day to make a run at the championships. The final day of the competition will start with preliminaries at 10 a.m. Final rounds will commence at 5:30 p.m.
