by staff–19 Feb ’16
The University of Wyoming Cowgirl swimming and diving team set a school record and finished third in the 200 free relay, while sophomore Kelly Sheldon individually set the school’s top-mark in the 500 free final during the second day of the Mountain West Championships. After two days of events in College Station, the Cowgirls are in fifth place with 152 total team points.
“The 200 free relay was a good starting point for the team today,” UW head coach Tom Johnson said. “I’m proud of how hard they worked to set the school record and I couldn’t be happier for not just Kelly (Sheldon), but everyone that competed today.”
The Thursday nights finals session opened with the 200 free relay with Isobel Ryan, Danielle Badger, Emily Stucky and Emily Ridout clocking a 1:29.96 to finish third overall. It became the top-mark in Cowgirl history surpassing the previously set record of 1:30.55 in 2010.
Sheldon set a school record in the 500 free final with a time of 4:49.30 to finish seventh overall. Earlier in the day, Sheldon recorded the second-best time in school history of 4:49.90 in the prelims. Emma Dow notched the fifth-best mark in school history during the 200 IM finals. She had a time of 2:02.72 on Thursday morning before placing tenth with a 2:01.25 in the final.
“A lot of the girls have made significant improvements from a year ago,” Johnson mentioned. “Emma (Dow) proved she is a fighter and didn’t quit. Emily (Ridout) had a tremendous day and even though had a better time in the prelims, she still came out tonight. It was a battle in every event today and the girls came ready to swim.”
Emily Ridout posted a school record in the 50 free prelims before taking second overall (22.42) in the final on Thursday night. Ridout’s prelim mark was 22.27. Isobel Ryan posted a 22.80 to place sixth and Badger finished in ninth (22.85) in the competitive 50 free final. Ryan touched the pads in 22.82 in the prelims, while Badger recorded a 22.92 to help guide UW.
In 3-meter diving consolation final, Kari Campbell scored 270.45 to place 14th overall, while Keely Bishop placed 16th overall with a 258.70.
“I’m feeling good about tomorrow’s events,” Johnson added. “Our upperclassmen are tough, and hopefully we can have a few freshman or sophomores to step up to the challenge.”
Action continues on Friday morning at 10 a.m. MT with prelims in the 400 IM, 100 fly, 200 free, 100 breast and 100 back. The finals will begin tomorrow evening at 5:30 p.m.
Live results, team scores, event highlights and more information for Thursday is available on the MW Women’s Swimming & Diving Championship Central page. The meet is also available on the app Meet Mobile. The MW links are free of charge, while there is a $1.99 fee to view information on the Meet Mobile app.
