The Hopkins women’s swim team faced its toughest test of the young season this past Saturday as it faced off against undefeated D-I foe Towson. While the Lady Jays were able to fight valiantly and post a number of impressive times, they were not able to vanquish their tough opponent and ultimately fell by a final mark of 193-91.
For the Lady Jays, Saturday brought their first defeat of the season as they dropped to a mark of 6-1. For Towson, their undefeated mark to open the season continued as they have opened up the year with a scorching 10-0 start. While the final score line is reflective of a decisive win for Towson, it is important to note that many Hopkins competitors posted excellent individual efforts. The level of intensity and fight was never in question in defeat, and this team should be immensely proud of their resolve against such an impressive opponent. Despite the loss, Hopkins remains one of the elite programs in D-III swimming, checking in at No. 7 overall in recent polls.
The meet opened on a positive note with second- and third-place finishes for Hopkins in the 200 Medley Relay. Freshman Michelle Kim, sophomore Pilar Shimizu, freshman Anna Wisniewski and senior Ana Bogdanovski took home the second-place finish clocking in at 1:46.68. Meanwhile their teammates, including sophomore Hannah Benn, freshman Gwynnie LaMastra, sophomore Abby Brown and senior Kylie Holden, secured third place in the event with a time of 1:46.68.
Among Hopkins performers, Bogdanovski picked up a victory in the 100 free posting a time of 51.66. She also posted an impressive performance in the 200 free as well, setting a time of 1:51.11. The senior was pleased with her own personal efforts, and she also offered insights into her expectations and goals for the rest of the season.
“I'm proud of how we did at Towson,” Bogdanovski said. "Going in we knew we were not likely to win against such a strong D-I school, but everyone raced and gave it their all. We did well for where we are in the season, and I expect great things at Conference and NCAAs.”
A number of Lady Jays managed to post personal bests at the meet. Sophomore Emily Lubin managed to touch in with a 52.35 in the 100 Free while Freshman Courtney Cowan managed to post a mark of 10:46.84 in the grueling 1000 meter Free, clocking in as the top Lady Jay in the event. Standout Freshman Kaitlyn Jones also managed to significantly improve her time in the 200 free, touching in at a blistering time of 1:58.07. The Lady Jays were able to produce a number of impressive results in some of the other races on the day, including placing 2nd-4th in the 100 breast and 2nd-5th in the 400 meter free relay.
Other Hopkins' swimmers chipped in gutsy efforts against Towson. Benn and Kim took second and third in the 100 Backstroke with times of 59.24 and 1:00.51, respectively. Brown finished third in the 200 Fly with a time of 2:08.79 and Wisniewski and Holden took third and fourth in the 50 Free with times of 24.82 and 25.13.
While the final result of Saturday's meet was disappointing, the Lady Jays are still having an excellent season and will look to regain momentum when they travel to Navy on Jan. 28. Seeing this as a minor setback against a very tough opponent, the Jays will look to pace themselves the rest of the way in order to make a sprint toward the finish come the Conference championship and NCAAs.
The Lady Jays will be in an excellent position against their D-III opponents in these championships thanks to all their experience against superior D-I teams.
The team will look to build upon this last week’s performance as it takes on Mary Washington this coming Friday here in Baltimore. The team will hit the pool at 6 p.m. This will be its final matchup before preparing for the much anticipated championship season.
