Feb. 22, 2009

Results | Complete Results

BOSTON - For the first time in 14 years, the Boston University women's swimming and diving team was crowned the America East champion on Sunday evening following victories in the 400-free relay and a 1-2 finish on the one-meter diving board. The men's team placed second, backed by record-breaking swims from sophomore Bryon Kallert in the 200 backstroke and 200 fly, freshman Jackson Hill in the 100 free and the 400-free relay team, which clocked in an NCAA provisional time.

The women's team earned 769 points over the four-day championship, knocking off two-time defending AE champion UMBC. The men finished with 873 points - 27 shy of first-place finisher UMBC.

Senior Tess Waresmith defended her reign at the conference championships sweeping both the one- and three-meter boards to earn the Most Outstanding Female Diver of the Meet honor. On Sunday evening, Waresmith completed the sweep with a record-breaking performance on the 1M with 539.90 points - a new conference record. Classmate Alex Crerar earned valuable points on the 1M, taking second place with 496.35 points and helping the Terriers distance themselves from the competition.

Sophomore Sarah Doersam will see her name added to the record board as she broke the 200 fly mark with a time of 2:03.99 - placing third in the event. Earlier in the evening Doersam also placed third in the 200 back, clocking in at 2:03.72.

Senior Eve Kinsella took second-place honors in the 100 free, touching the wall in 50.68, just .32 off the school record. During the awards ceremony at the conclusion of the meet, Kinsella was given the Coaches Award - presented to an America East senior who collected the most points at the conference championships over a four-year period.

Also making a splash at the conference championships was freshman Kristen Connors, who took second in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:19.12.

The women's 400-free relay of sophomore Kirsten Tullis, junior Emily Munday, sophomore Maria McIntyre and Kinsella closed out the weekend with a school and conference record time of 3:24.30.

On the men's side, Kallert broke two school and one conference mark. The New Milford, N.J., native began the night with a victory in the 200 back with a time of 1:48.75 - breaking the school record by nearly three seconds and the conference mark by two tenths. He continued his tear in the 200 fly, besting a 21-year-old record by nearly two seconds with a time of 1:51.28.

The men's team dominated the 100 free with first, third, fourth and fifth place finishes. Freshman Jackson Hill broke one of the oldest records on the books with a winning time of 44.18 - breaking Sean Nottage's record from 1986 by over a second. Sophomore Matt Rickett, who earned the Most Outstanding Swimmer of the Meet accolade, place third in the event with a time of 45.12 and he was followed by junior Arik Seiler (4th, 45.32) and freshman Sam Weinstein (5th, 45.53).

The Terriers' 400-free relay of freshman Daniel Kempf, Rickett, Seiler and Hill touched in 2:57.72 - breaking a school and conference record and provisionally qualifiying for the NCAA.

In all 24 records were set over a course of four days between the BU men's and women's teams. Senior Andre Watson earned the conference's Most Outstanding Male Diver of the Meet, while the Boston University coaching staff of head coach Bill Smyth, assistant coach Jen Strasburger and diving coach Agnes Gerlach-Miller were named the Men's Coaching Staff of the Year.