Nov. 23, 2008

Complete Results

Columbia, S.C. - Sophomore Chip Peterson added to the record-breaking weekend for the Tar Heels by demolishing the school record in the 1650-yard freestyle while helping lead the North Carolina men's and women's swimming and diving teams to decisive victories at Carolina Natatorium in the 2008 Gamecock Invitational.

After the third and final day of competition, the Tar Heel men and women finished the meet with commanding first-place finishes. Carolina's women completed the meet with 1,360 points, eclipsing second place South Carolina's 801 total by more than 500 points. Duke finished third with 774.5, followed by East Carolina with 546.5, Syracuse with 315, College of Charleston with 66 and Lenoir-Rhyne with 6.

On the men's side, North Carolina scored 1,337.5 points, followed by South Carolina with 842.5, Duke with 697, East Carolina with 404.5, Syracuse with 368.5 and College of Charleston with 143 points.

In the first event of the evening, sophomore Katura Harvey placed second in the 1650-yard freestyle with a time of 16:36.89. Teammates Katelyn Martin, Ashley Miller and Lindsay McIlvain finished 9-10-11, respectively.

Chip Peterson set a new record of 14:48.86 in the 1650-yard freestyle, shattering sophomore teammate Joe Kinderwater's school record from last year by almost five seconds, and garnering an automatic bid to the 2008 NCAA Championships. Kinderwater took second with a time of 14:58.31, and freshman Wil Singley rounded out the super final with a fourth place finish in 15:46.30. Senior Yi-Khy Saw and junior Hank Browning finished in seventh and eighth places, respectively, in 15:50.59 and 15:58.92.

Peterson's 1000-yard freestyle split during the 1650 was a career best 8:59.39 and it moved him into second place in school history behind Kinderwater's school record of 8:58.09 of last season.

In the women's 200-yard backstroke, Megan Steeves took first place and set a career best time of 1:58.62. Ashley Howard finished third in 2:02.30 and freshman Brooke Atkinson took fourth in 2:03.55, a personal best by a second and a half.

Sophomore Tommy Wyher took a second place medal the 200-yard backstroke on the men's side in 1:47.86, another career best on the evening. Junior Jeff James, swimming in a separate heat, eclipsed Wyher's time with a 1:47.28 to take fifth place.

Megan Steeves won her second individual event of the evening and fourth of the weekend in the women's 100-yard freestyle with a time of 50.35, just two hundredths shy of her career best at the time. Sophomore Rebecca Kane grabbed third place in 50.87. Junior Eliza Butts took sixth place in the event with a season best time of 51.82, followed in eighth place by senior Aubrette Biegel and 12th place by Katura Harvey.

Freshman Evan Reed took second place in the men's 100-yard freestyle in 45.01. Fellow freshman Steve Cerbertowicz finished eighth in 46.01 and junior Hank Browning placed 12th in 48.02.

Carolina women excelled in the 200-yard breaststroke by taking first, second and fourth place finishes. Junior tri-captain Alison Clemens won the event in 2:17.81, followed by freshman Layne Brodie in 2:18.36. Freshman Katie Keel took fourth in 2:20.76.

Tyler Harris continued his phenomenal weekend with a win and a personal best in the 200-yard breaststroke. Harris' time of 1:58.33 demolished his previous best, set this season, by more than two seconds. Sophomore Vinny Pryor took third in 2:00.55. Sophomore Flynn Jones took fourth place in 2:05.45, setting a career best time in the event for the third time this season. Sophomore Andy Brake finished 10th to round out the field with a time of 2:08.16.

In the women's 200-yard butterfly, freshman Enuf Swanson returned from injury to finish in third place with a time of 2:03.62. Freshman teammates Kerianne McAfee, Laura Moriarty and Larua Ruscoe finished fifth, eighth and ninth, respectively.

Junior Jason McLaughlin had the highest finish for the Tar Heels in the men's 200-yard butterfly, taking third place in 1:50.51. Tyler Harris finished fourth after just winning the 200 breaststroke, Robert Grimmett-Norris finished seventh and Yi-Khy Saw took 12th.

On the three-meter diving board, UNC women took four of the top eight spots. Jenna Moore led the Tar Heels with a third-place finish, scoring a career-high 291.05 points. Kaci Hollingsworth finished sixth with 258.95, a career-high score. Kristen Arnold and Katy Pritchett finished seventh and eighth, respectively.

The Tar Heel men dominated the one-meter diving board, taking first and second places. Junior David Solarz grabbed first with a career-high score of 355.90 points and freshman David MacDonald took second with 353.10 points. Austin Bradyhouse finished fourth with 329.45 points, another career record. Alex Kenley also set a career best with 288.75, finishing sixth.

UNC's men's and women's relay teams won the final event of the evening, the 400-yard freestyle relay. Megan Steeves, Eliza Butts, Aubrette Biegel and Rebecca Kane swam a NCAA `B' consideration time of 3:22.69, besting the remainder of the field by almost four seconds. Steeves led off the relay in a career best 50.19 for the 100 yards freestyle.

For the men, the team of Evan Reed, Steve Cebertowicz, Brad Hamilton and Jeff James won a tight race in 3:00.11 for a Tar Heel season best time.

The Tar Heels return to action Dec. 4-6 at the USA Swimming Short Course National Championships in Atlanta, Ga.