Two Historic All-America Women's Swims Delivered on Day 1 of NCAA Championships

Hope is in seventh place with 37 points

A pair of historic swims highlighted a successful start for the ninth-ranked Hope College women's swimming and diving team at the NCAA Division III Championships.

The Flying Dutch delivered their first All-America First Team performance in the 400-yard medley relay in 25 years on Wednesday in Greensboro, North Carolina, while senior Greta Gidley became the second swimmer in program history to earn three All-America First Team accolades in the 200 individual medley.

Hope, the MIAA champion the past five years, heads into Day 2 of the four-day meet at the Greensboro Aquatic Center in seventh place with 37 points.

In the 400 medley relay, senior Sara Kraus (Rockford, Michigan / Rockford HS), senior Lauren Ryle (Grand Rapids, Michigan / Catholic Central), Gidley (Franklin, Michigan / Mercy) and junior Laurel Wasiniak (Northville, Michigan / Northville) clocked an eighth-place swim of 3 minutes, 44.44 seconds during the championship final.

The group earned All-America First Team honors for the 10th time in program history and the first time since a sixth-place finish in 2000.

During prelims, Hope set a school record of 3:43.41, eclipsing the 3:44.43 delivered at the MIAA Championships in February. MIT won the national title after touching the wall at 3:38.48.

The Flying Dutch also scored in the 200 IM.

Gidley finished fourth in the final at 2:01.40 to match Dawn Hoving '94 as a three-time All-America First Team recipient. Sophia Verkleeren of Williams College (Massachusetts) won the event in 1:59.93.

Hoving finished as national runner-up for Hope as a junior, placing sixth as a senior and eighth as a sophomore. Gidley was national runner-up as a junior and a sophomore.

Also, during the 200 IM prelims, junior Katie Hermann (Canton, Michigan / Mercy) recorded a 30th-place swim of 2:06.32.

During the 50 free prelims, Ryle tied for 16th place with a swim of 23.30. Braelyn Wilson of Kean University (New Jersey) topped Ryle in a swim-off for a spot in the consolation final.

Junior Bella Turner (Chelsea, Michigan / Chelsea) tied for 22nd in the 50 free at 23.42 seconds.

Kenyon College (Ohio) leads after Day 1 with 104 points. MIT is in second with 93 points and followed by Denison University (Ohio) with 87, New York University with 86, Emory University (Georgia) with 80 and Williams with 70.

The rest of the Top 10 features Hope, Tufts University (Massachusetts) with 33, Pomona Pitzer (California) with 32 and the University of Chicago with 30.

Day 2 begins on Thursday, March 20, at 10 a.m. with prelims. Finals start at 6 p.m. Watch both sessions on ncaa.com.

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