The Hope College women's swimming & diving team grabbed four top seeds for tonight's championship races at the Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association Championships.

Coach John Patnott's Flying Dutch qualified nine swimmers and one relay for the title races that begin at 5:30 p.m. at Calvin College.

Photo of Molly Meyer courtesy of Steve Johnson

Hope leads the meet after two days with 280 points. The Flying Dutch hold a nine-point lead over reigning MIAA champion Calvin.

The 200 medley relay of sophomore Michelle Hance of Noblesville, Ind. (Noblesville HS), sophomore Jorgie Watson of Grand Rapids (Catholic Central HS), freshman Molly Meyer of South Bend, Ind. (John Adams HS) and freshman Mikayla Freyling of Alto (Grand Rapids South Christian HS) topped the preliminary field by swimming a time of 1 minute, 48.92 seconds.

Sophomore Lindsay Wiederhold of Plainwell (Plainwell HS) posted the fastest preliminary time in the 400 individual medley at 4:40.77.

Watson posted the fastest 100 breaststroke time during preliminaries at 1:06.12. Junior Taryn Gras of Zeeland (Zeeland East HS) also made the championship race, finishing eighth at 1:12.46.

Meyer led the 100 butterfly preliminary field with a swim of 58.46.

Meyer also placed third in the 100 backstroke to lead a group of four Hope swimmers reaching the championship race. She had a preliminary time of 58.26.

Sophomore Klare Northuis of Holland (Holland HS) took fourth at 59.43. She was followed by senior Maria Kieft of Spring Lake (Spring Lake HS) in fifth at 59.48 and Hance in seventh at 59.44.

Sophomore Hannah Larson of Jackson (Jackson HS) and junior Luisa Burgess of Pittsburgh, Pa. (Taylor Allderice HS), came in fifth and sixth, respectively, in the 200 freestyle with times of 1:57.65 and 1:58.11.

Click here for the MIAA Championships homepage.