Feb. 10, 2007
Complete Results Championship Central
BALTIMORE - Junior backstroker Jacylyn Giunta (Smithtown,N.Y./Smithtown) established a career-best time in the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 2:19.31, while junior freestyle specialist Megan Dobbins (Huntington, Conn./Lauralton Hall Academy) set a career-best time of 54.33 to place fifth in the 100-yard freestyle event to lead Siena to a seventh-place finish in the final day of the 2007 MAAC Championships at Loyola College in Baltimore Saturday.
Giunta's time of 54.33 eclipsed her previous time of 2:19.45, in which she ironically set earlier in the preliminary trials, while Dobbins shattered her previous time of 54.92, which came last season.
"I thought that our team did outstanding this weekend," first year head coach Greg Brown said. "We had some adversity early on and we pushed through and moved forward. Overall, I think we set a precedent this weekend for our program for the years to follow."
For the fourth-straight year, the Marist Red Foxes claimed the conference championship, tallying 899 points, while the Rider Broncs came in second with 696 points. Siena finished behind sixth-place Niagara, who tallied 318 points.
This has been the second time in as many years in which the Saints have finished in seventh-place. Their best showing was at the 2003 MAAC Championships, when they posted a second-place finish.
The Saints opened up finals competitions with the 3-meter diving event, in which sophomore Lisa O'Connell (Queens, N.Y./Saint Francis Prep) placed 14th, registering a score of 183.90.
Sophomore distance specialist Melissa Nocera (Holbrook, N.Y./Saint Anthony's) laid claim to a 19th place finish in the 1650-yard freestyle event, as she touched the wall with a time of 19:24.21.
Officially ending her collegiate career, senior freestyler Ashley Serrago (Hauppauge, N.Y./Hauppauge) finished 10 spots behind Dobbins, placing 15th in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 56.35.
The Saints completed the 2007 MAAC Championships with a sixth-place showing in the 400-yard freestyle relay, as Dobbins, freshman Allison O'Keefe (Southington, Conn./Saint Paul Catholic), freshman Meghan Brauer (Clifton Park, N.Y./Shenendehowa) and Serrago all paced the pool with a time of 3:44.55.
