The pouring rain and chilly temperatures did not prevent the La Verne Leopards from shining against the Occidental Tigers this weekend. The LV men won with an impressive 158-122; the LV women dropped the team score 181-101 but not before junior Jackie Rojas went 1:09.31 in the 100 Breaststroke - setting a Varsity record.
Senior Coleman Goode led the men - winning 4 events. As the first leg of the 200 Medley Relay, he put the Leopards in first on the leader board during the very first event. Goode continued his domination in the 100 backstroke (55.09), 200 backstroke (2:01.69) and the 400 individual medley (4:20.96). Freshman Daniel Carpenter continued his stellar rookie season winning 3 events. Carpendter anchored the winning 200 Medley Relay, also winning both the 200 freestyle (1:51.41) and the 100 freestyle (49.25). Junior sprinter Devon Photias put the pedal to the metal, winning both the 50 freestyle (22.82) and the 100 butterfly (55.95). Senior Marc Okimura was a dominant part of the winning Medley Relay taking care of the breaststroke leg and coming back to lead a 1-2 sweep of the 100 breaststroke going 1:10.83. Rounding out the men, sophomore diver Scott McKay showcased some tough new dives which helped him win both the 1 meter (210.20) and 3 meter (207.90)
On the women's side, junior Jackie Rojas set the La Verne record in the 100 Breaststroke but was just touched out by Occidental's 2013 Conference Swimmer of the Year, Caroline Chang. The winning 200 Medley Relay of junior Maddie Lovrensky, Rojas, senior Sammi Shiomoto and junior Melanie Consiglio was only .5 seconds shy of setting another varsity record with a blazingingly fast 1:53.56. Lovrensky continued to lead the SCIAC; winning 3 individual events along with the Medley Relay. She dominated her specialty - the 100 backstroke (1:00.19) and 200 backstroke (2:11.79). Lovrensky also lead the 1-2 victory in the 50 freestyle (25.51) with junior Consiglio securing 2nd with 25.77. In the final individual event of the day freshman Krisyln Cha took a run at the varsity record in the 400 IM posting the 2nd fastest time in Leopard history (5:02.69).
Coach Skehan felt this was a solid team performance. "We did not let the weather or competition get in our way," Coach Skehan said. "One of the most exciting aspects of the meet were the performances of the new freshman. They stepped up and challenged some of the SCIAC's finest. Daniel Carpenter, Harry Bennett, Krsiyln Cha and Jessie Watkins all demonstrated the ability to be very competitive in this conference, making for a bright future for the Leopards."
Next week the teams host the Winter Invite at the Brenda Villa Aquatic Center in Commerce. The meet will host 10 teams in a 3 day format, with some Division II and NAIA teams along joining some of the top SCIAC teams.