John Reid/Atlantic 10

Richmond Wins 16th A-10 Women's Swimming Title, First Since 2017

4/17/2021 7:29:39 PM

GENEVA, Ohio – Richmond women's swimming won its 16th Atlantic 10 Women's Swimming Championship, and it's first since 2017, Saturday at the SPIRE Institute. The Spiders won three events Saturday, bringing their point total to 687.5 points, nearly 150 points better than the next closest team.
 
Richmond's first three gold medals of the championship came Saturday, however, Richmond earned eight silver and five bronze medals for a total of 16 top-three finishes. UR also had 34 top-eight finishes through the four-day meet. Richmond coach Matt Barany was named Atlantic 10 Women's Coach of the Year for the ninth time.
 
Davidson's Shelby Stanley won the 200-yard butterfly Saturday in 1:57.82, just shy of the A-10 record. It was her seventh medal of the meet, and she was named the Women's Most Outstanding Swimmer.
 
Richmond freshman Alexa Connors, who finished second in the 1,650 meters on Saturday, second in the 500-yard freestyle, and was part of the silver-medaling 800-yard freestyle relay team, was named the A-10 Women's Rookie of the Year.
 
George Mason's Marina Toone, who won the 3-meter dive with a score of 315.05, and captured silver in the 1-meter dive with a 274.65 was named the Most Outstanding Women's Diver. Mason diving coach Zach Hawley was the Women's Diving Coach of the Year. The Patriots had four divers medal in the diving portion of the A-10 Championship, which was held at George Mason's Aquatic Center on Thursday and Friday.
 
Richmond's three Saturday gold medals came in the 100-yard freestyle, the 200-yard breaststroke and the 400-yard free relay. Lauren Medlin recorded a 49.61 to earn the 100-yard free gold medal and Margaret Purcell finished first in the 200-yard back with a time of 2:13.70. Medlin, Purcell, Katelyn Pennell and Claire O'Shaughnessy won the 400-yard freestyle relay with a time of 3:21.03.
 
George Washington's Erin McCarthy had a gold-medal winning time of 16:40.68 in the 1,650-yard freestyle, and Sara Rizzetto won La Salle's first gold of the meet with a 1:57.65 in the 200-yard backstroke.