Georgetown, Seton Hall Earn #BIGEASTSwim Accolades
NEW YORK- Georgetown's Gabriella Meringolo and Seton Hall's Thomas Staes have earned this week's BIG EAST Swimming and Diving Athlete of the Week Awards. Meringolo lifted the Hoyas squad to a win over Davidson with two individual event wins. Staes grabbed three top-two finishes for the Pirates as the Seton Hall men took down Drexel over the weekend.
Over the weekend, Georgetown men and women claimed a victory over Davidson. Seton Hall men triumphed over visiting Drexel, while the women fell 160-139 to the Dragons. Providence men were in action against NJIT but fell short to the Highlanders 156.5 to 134.5. Xavier men's and women's squads traveled to Kenyon where the Musketeers were outpaced on both sides.
Male Athlete of the Week
Thomas Staes, Seton Hall, So., Breast/IM (Berlaar, Belgium)
Staes earned his first weekly award after leading the Pirates to a 170-127 win over visiting Drexel. The sophomore turned in two top-five times in the BIG EAST over the weekend with a win in the 200 breast at 2:03.12 to claim the No. 2 time in the conference. Staes recorded a runner up finish in the 100 breast with a time of 2:08.25 to land in fourth in the BIG EAST. The Belgium native wrapped up weekend competition with a second place finish in the 200 IM with a time of 1:56.27.
Female Athlete of the Week
Gabriella Meringolo, Georgetown, So., Fly (Garden City, N.Y.)
Meringolo led the Hoya women to their third-consecutive win to open the season with two individual victories as she swept the 100- and 200-yard butterfly competitions. The sophomore posted a season-best time of 58.01 in the 100 fly to claim the event by .60 seconds. Meringolo closed out the win over Davidson with the fourth best time in the BIG EAST in the 200 fly at 2:08.25.
Notable Performances
Connor Morikawa, Georgetown, Fr., Breast (Weston, Conn.)
Morikawa aided the Hoya men to victory with two event wins in the 100-yard breast and the 200 yard breast. The rookie won the 100-breast with a season best time of 57.80 before winning the 200 breast at a 2:05.78 time.
Jon Bernard, Xavier, Fr., Back/Breast/IM (Maineville, Ohio)
Bernard led Xavier with three event wins in the dual meet at Kenyon last weekend. He picked up the first of three individual wins in the 100 back with a time of 50.94. Bernard also took the top spot in the 200 breast (2:04.98) and the 200 IM (1:53.26).
Heidi Dickson, Seton Hall, So., Free/Fly (Greenwich, N.J.)
Dickson claimed two event wins in the Pirates setback against Drexel. The sophomore won the 200 free with a time of 1:54.88 before taking home a victory in the 500 free at 5:09.08.