Scots Off From Competition Until Second Weekend in Jan.

Kyle Oaks

Woo Invite Recap (Men): On Nov. 30-Dec. 2, Wooster earned a second-place finish at the eight-team Wooster Invitational held at Wooster High School, as the Scots only finished behind Westminster (Pa.) College, which won the event with a total of 2,232 points. Wooster scored 1,488 points, followed by Case Western Reserve University (1,318.50), Ohio Northern University (995), St. Vincent College (530.50), John Carroll University (337), Oberlin College (288), and Lycoming College (189).
    Highlighting the Scots’ relay successes was the 400 freestyle team of Kyle Oaks (Franklin, Ind. / Franklin Community), Dan Noble (Akron, Ohio / Revere), Brandon DuGar (Cleveland Hts., Ohio / Cleveland Heights), and Ryan Radtke (Willoughby, Ohio / Notre Dame-Cathedral Latin), who landed second-place honors with a time of 3:12.38.
    Individually, Radtke produced Wooster’s highest finish of the weekend, coming in second in the 200 IM with a time of 2:00.30.
    The Scots’ most impressive event was the 100 freestyle, with four placing among the top-10, led by Oaks’ and Radtke’s third- (48.59) and fourth-place finishes (48.80), respectively. DuGar won the consolation heat (ninth-place) in a time of 48.75 and Noble landed 10th (48.83).
    In the 500 freestyle, Logan LaBerge (Towson, Md. / Towson) took home fourth-place (4:54.56), while Ted Polley (Crawfordsville, Ind. / Crawfordsville) won the consolation heat, good for ninth (5:07.33), and Joe Witkowski (Bloomfield Hills, Mich. / Groves) was right behind Polley in 10th-place (5:10.95). Witkowski also factored in the 1650 freestyle, touching in 18:11.39 for ninth-place.
    The 100 butterfly saw three top-10 performances from Wooster, led by DuGar’s third-place finish in 52.99, and Matt Dominski (Winnetka, Ill. / New Trier Twp.) in fourth (53.34). Noble was ninth (55.12). Three Scots also cracked the top-10 in the 100 breaststroke, paced by Chincilla and Olsen, who touched seventh (1:01.46) and eighth (1:01.46), respectively, while Radtke posted a 10th-place showing in that event (1:02.17).
    A trio of performers also scored significant points in the 100 backstroke, with Michael Saltzman (Evansville, Ind. / Asheville School – N.C.) taking home fifth-place honors (56.33), Oaks finishing seventh (56.97), and LaBerge winning the consolation heat for ninth-place (55.39). The 200 backstroke saw LaBerge wind up in fourth-place (2:02.17), while Johann Weber (Oregon City, Ore. / Canby) won the consolation heat to finish ninth (2:10.51).
    Other notable swims were turned in by Eric Babbitt (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif. / Santa Margarita Catholic), who was third in his lone event of the invite – the 200 butterfly (1:59.40); Chinchilla, who added sixth- and seventh-place swims in the 400 IM (4:37.21) and 200 breaststroke (2:15.03), respecitvely; DuGar, who hit seventh in the 50 free (22.49); and Andrew Olsen (Evanston, Ill. / Evanston Twp.), who finished sixth in the 200 breast (2:14.14).

    Woo Invite Recap (Women): On Nov. 30-Dec. 2, Wooster closed its fall season in fine fashion, winning the 10-team Wooster Invitational, held at Ellen Shapiro Natatorium and Wooster High School. The Scots recorded 1,550.50 points, over 200 more than their nearest competition in Westminster (Pa.) College (1,315) and California University of Pennsylvania (1,292) and 650-plus ahead of the rest of the field.
    Highlighting Wooster’s results were two relay wins (200 freestyle, 200 medley) and Meggie Edwards’ (Lynchburg, Va. / E.C. Glass) individual victory in the 100 backstroke. Edwards nearly posted an NCAA Div. III Championships-qualifying time, as her mark of 1:00.02 was just three-hundredths shy of getting on the list for nationals. Edwards was part of both winning relays, combining with Molly Bittner (Westfield Center, Ohio / Cloverleaf), Allie Kibler-Campbell (Benton Harbor, Mich. / St. Joseph), and Alice Case (Berkeley Hts., N.J. / Mount Saint Mary Acad.) in the 200 freestyle relay (1:40.21), and with Syd Kelly (Edina, Minn. / Edina), Case, and Bittner for a pool record in the 200 medley (1:51.39).
    The Scots demonstrated their strength in the sprint freestyles throughout the meet. In the 50 free, four Wooster individuals advanced to the championship heat, with Edwards taking third (24.96), Bittner tying for fourth-place (25.33), and Kibler-Campbell and Case coming in seventh (25.50) and eighth (25.76), respectively. Three of those four finished among the top-four in the 100 free as well, as Edwards (54.18), Bittner (54.71), and Case (54.76) gave the Scots respective second-, third-, and fourth-place efforts.
    Another high-scoring event for Wooster was the 100 breaststroke, in which three individuals were among the top-six. Kelly was the runner-up (1:09.53), while Lindsey Dorko (Chardon, Ohio / Perry) and Kibler-Campbell took fifth and sixth with respective times of 1:10.83 and 1:11.36. Dorko posted three fifth-place finishes overall, also earning that position in the 200 breast (2:34.86) and in the 200 IM (2:16.29).
    In the backstroke, Edwards was complemented by teammates Kate Kosenick (Fanwood, N.J. / Scotch Plains-Fanwood) and Heather Moore (Fairport, N.Y. / Fairport), who touched fourth (1:02.21) and eighth (1:04.32), respectively, in the championship heat of the 100. Kosenick also factored in the 200, finishing sixth (2:15.52).
    The Scots’ distance specialist, Amanda Bailey (Westlake, Ohio / Westlake), had a strong meet, producing three top-three swims. She was the runner-up in the 1650 freestyle (18:32.81) and third in both the 500 free (5:23.58) and the 400 IM (4:49.92). Kristine Mann (Warren, Ohio / Howland) backed her up in the 500 with a fourth-place performance (5:24.02), and later in the meet, added a fifth-place in the 200 butterfly (2:20.62).
    Additional noteworthy swims for Wooster included Case finishing as the runner-up in the 100 fly (1:00.69), Kelly garnering third in the 200 breaststroke (2:31.32), and Elaine Coladarci (Evanston, Ill. / Evanston Twp.) placing sixth in the 400 IM (5:02.77).