Lady'Backs Fall in SEC Opener

BATON ROUGE, La.,-In the first Southeastern Conference meet of the season, the University of Arkansas swimming and diving team falls to Louisiana State, 73-60, and Alabama, 74-59, in Baton Rouge, La. Head coach Anne Goodman James was pleased with the way the Lady Razorbacks performed despite the loss especially against LSU. “We really swam very well,” Goodman James said. “With LSU, it came down to the last event, the 400-free relay, and personnel wise we didn’t have enough left. Alabama looked really, really good. They were really on today. ” The team of freshmen Katie Borkovec, Emily Gregory, Tifanie Silver and senior Lisa Petry finished second to LSU in the relay to narrowly miss the opportunity to steal a win from the Tigers. Senior Whitney Lynn paced the Lady’Backs as she won the 500 and 1,000 freestyle. Lynn improved her time in both events. Goodman James said she was happy with her all-American’s performance against conference competition. Lynn’s time of 10:03.70 in the 1,000 recorded the fourth fastest time in school history, a mark she broke against Drury, Oct. 22. “Certainly, the star of the day was Whitney Lynn,” Goodman James said. “She was in total command of both races from the very beginning. It’s going to be very exciting to see what happens with her the rest of the season.” In the diving competition, freshman Brieanne Kushner took second-place honors in the one- and three-meter events. Freshman Hilarie Wilson contributed to the Lady’Back cause as she finished third in the one meter and fourth in the three meter. In the butterfly events, Gregory led the charge for the Lady’Backs with a second-place finish in the 100 fly and a fourth-place finish in the 200 fly. Goodman James said Gregory had a strong performance in her first SEC meet of her career. ”Emily continued to show us what a supreme competitor she is,” Goodman James said. “She has a lot of poise for a freshman.” The Lady’Backs return to the pool Saturday, Oct. 30, at 10:30 a.m. against Tulane and the University of New Orleans in New Orleans. For more information on Arkansas swimming and diving, log on to www.ladybacks.com.