WATERFORD TOWNSHIP, Mich. – The Wayne State women and Grand Valley State men continue to lead the way after Day 3 of the 2016 Great Lakes Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (GLIAC) Swimming & Diving Championships hosted by Wayne State University at Waterford Mott High School.
The WSU women (648.5) hold a 74.5 lead heading into the final day of the Lakers of GVSU (574), while Northern Michigan sits third (400) and Saginaw Valley State remains fourth (317). On the men's side, Grand Valley State is setting the pace with 601 points through Event 31 and hold a 74.5 point edge over Wayne State (526.5) as Northern Michigan is ranked third (417) and Tiffin sits fourth (241).
Grand Valley State junior Leonie Van Noort improved her medal count to five on Friday with a pair of victories and was a part of two more GLIAC meet record-setting performances in the women's 500 freestyle (4:52.17) and as the anchor on the 800 free relay with the help of teammates Sam Postmus, Kathryn Culver, and Lara Deibel with a time of 7:25.40. GVSU senior Gianni Ferrero recorded his fifth victory of the meet in impressive fashion setting an all-time GLIAC record in the 100 backstroke with a scorching time of 47.00.
Wayne State freshman Ahmed Ahmed picked up his third gold medal of the championships with a triumph in the men's 500 freestyle touching in with a time of 4:29.23. The Warrior women collected a pair of individual wins in the 100 backstroke conquered by Brenna Gabrielson who stopped the clock in 55.40, while Hannah Loesch claimed her third first-place finish of the week with a 1:02.95 showing in the 100 breaststroke.
Friday was a big day for the Northern Michigan Wildcats who earned four titles to place the NMU men and women both solidly in third place in the team competition. Graduate student Marc Perelló conquered a pair of events on Day 3 with an individual gold medal in the 100 breaststroke (54.35) and as part of the 800 free relay with his Wildcat teammates Ryan Leonard, Janne Roovers and Grantas Dapkus (6:44.17). For the Marquette women, freshman Emily Bell bested the field in the 200 butterfly with a time of 2:04.55, while senior Molly Kearney earned the victory in the 3-meter dive after accumulating 433.55 points.
Findlay standout sophomore Janko Radmanovic won the championship title in the 200 yard butterfly for the Oilers with a NCAA 'B' standard time of 1:47.65.
Be sure to follow all of the action on the 2016 GLIAC Swimming & Diving Championships homepage.