Sharks Claim 2009 GNAC Swimming & Diving Championship

Simmons Swimming & Diving was named the 2009 Great Northeast Athletic Conference Champion on Sunday night, as the Sharks finished the two-day championship meet with 305 team points. The win, Simmons’ sixth in a row, and eighth in nine years, capped a weekend where 10 GNAC and two pool records fell in one of the fastest GNAC meets in conference history. More than 100 athletes from the GNAC’s six teams gathered at the Holmes Sports and Fitness Center at Simmons College to race for the championship title.

December 6, 2009

Boston, Mass. -- Simmons Swimming & Diving was named the 2009 Great Northeast Athletic Conference Champion on Sunday night, as the Sharks finished the two-day championship meet with 305 team points. The win, Simmons’ sixth in a row, and eighth in nine years, capped a weekend where 10 GNAC and two pool records fell in one of the fastest GNAC meets in conference history. More than 100 athletes from the GNAC’s six teams gathered at the Holmes Sports and Fitness Center at Simmons College to race for the championship title.

GNAC Commissioner Joe Walsh and Simmons Director of Athletics Ali Kantor presented first-place Simmons and runner-up Elms with award plaques at the conclusion of the racing. The Blazers captured six first-place finishes in the finals, earning 159 team points, the depth of their squad proving strong enough to secure the second-place spot behind the Sharks.

Final Points
1 Simmons College 305
2 Elms College 159
3 Saint Joseph's College of ME 130
4 Saint Joseph College-CT 114
5 Husson University 110
6 Norwich University 96

The 2009 GNAC Swimming & Diving All-Tournament Team (by event):

200 Free Relay: Simmons - Chennelle Jackson, Virginia Bette, Alyssa Musket, Brittany Torelli (GNAC RECORD)
500 Free: Hannah Gajewski, Saint Joseph's College-ME
200 IM: Sarah Wheeler, Saint Joseph College-CT (GNAC RECORD)
50 Free: Alyssa Musket, Simmons (GNAC RECORD)
100 Fly: Chennelle Jackson, Simmons
200 Free: Hannah Gajewski, Saint Joseph's College (ME)
100 Breast: Anne Vayda, Norwich
50 Fly: Sarah Wheeler, Saint Joseph College-CT (GNAC, POOL RECORD)
200 Back: Amanda Mason, Husson
400 Medley Relay: Simmons - Virginia Bette, Brittany Torelli, Chennelle Jackson, Alyssa Musket
1 Mtr Diving: Kaira King, Simmons
3 Mtr Diving: Heather O’Connell, Simmons
200 Medley Relay: Elms - Ashley Arbo, Tessa Dudunake, Emalee Furtek, Chalis Bird (GNAC RECORD)
1000 Free: Hannah Gajewski, Saint Joseph's College-ME
50 Breast: Tessa Dudunake, Elms
100 Back: Virginia Bette, Simmons (GNAC RECORD)
100 Free: Sarah Wheeler, Saint Joseph College-CT
100 IM: Tessa Dudunake, Elms (GNAC, POOL RECORD)
200 Breast: Anne Vayda, Norwich (GNAC RECORD)
200 Fly: Sarah Wheeler, Saint Joseph College-CT (GNAC RECORD)
50 Back: Alyssa Musket, Simmons
400 Free Relay: Elms - Chalis Bird, Ashley Arbo, Tessa Dudunake, Theresa Pitassi (GNAC RECORD)

Courtesy: Simmons Athletic Communications