The Bowling Green swimming team placed third in the Mid-American Conference Championships this past weekend, edging Eastern Michigan out in the last event of the meet.
The Falcons took third with 476 points, followed by Miami with 496 while Akron took the Championship with 574.
Going into the final event, BG was ahead one point of EMU, after losing a 47 point lead in the 3-meter diving finals. The 400 freestyle relay team would go on to break the school record and solidify the team’s third place position.
The team of Victoria Griffin, Brittany Szekely, Joelle Scheps and Hannah Newman touched the wall at 3:20.49 for second place.
Starting Thursday, the Falcons tied for fourth with Buffalo after a day of record-breaking swims. Tara Capouch set the new record for the 500 freestyle in the consolation heat with 4:52.84. The record was previously held by Emily Waller, who finished sixth in the championship heat.
Joelle Scheps was just .2 seconds from beating the school record in the 200 individual medley, touching the wall at 2:02.49. The senior went on to take seventh in the championship heat.
Griffin and Szekely took sixth and seventh in the championship heat for the 50 freestyle.
Going into day two, the Falcons would advance to third place as Hannah Newman, Griffin and Scheps would have solid swims for the team.
In the 800 freestyle relay, Griffin, Scheps, Waller and Newman broke another school record by three seconds, giving the team a second place finish.
The four would also swim strong in the 200 freestyle, Newman qualifying in prelims for first for the championship final. Griffin and Scheps would join her, placing third in fourth in the event. Newman ended in seventh.
Waller qualified for the consolation final along with teammate Erica Nieminen.
On day three, the final day of competition, the Falcons started only eight points behind Miami for second. Akron sat at first with a 54 point advantage.
This is when the diving would affect BG’s scores, just like it has in every meet this season. But, the team has been able to overcome the absence, and Saturday night was no different.
Daniela Carrillo and Griffin had strong swims, giving the team points that enabled them to remain in third going into the final event. Both finished second— Carrillo in the 200 breaststroke and Griffin in the 100 freestyle.
Scheps won the consolation final and Szekely touched the wall for third.
Jordan Bullock placed fifth in the 200 butterfly to add to the points.
The 400 relay team, though, would make sure Bowling Green kept its third place spot in the final event.
This is the second consecutive year BG has finished third in the MAC Championships, breaking six school records and tying one.
To add to the success at MAC Championships, Griffin was named to the MAC First Team All-Conference, while Waller, Scheps and Bullock all made the second team.
Coming up next are the NCAA Championships, which start March 20 in Minneapolis, Minn. The Falcons are currently waiting to see if any swimmers qualifiy for the meet.
