Feb. 9, 2007
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. - Purdue used a record-breaking night off the 3-meter springboard to leapfrog Northwestern for sixth place during Friday's second day of competition at the Big Ten Championships in Minneapolis.
Heading into Saturday's final events, the Boilermakers lead the Wildcats by one point for sixth, 207-206. Indiana is the new leader with 453.5 points, 66 ahead of second-place Penn State. Friday's leader, Michigan, dropped to third with 378 points.
Five Boilermaker divers scored points off the 3-meter, the most ever by a Purdue team in a springboard event. Last season, five Boilermakers placed among the top 11 in the platform tower competition.
Senior Amanda Miller led the divers with her second-place and personal best score of 378.90 points, which was two points shy of breaking Carrie McCambridge's varsity record of 380.50 (set at last year's conference championships). Freshmen Ashley Karnes and Chelsea Johnson also posted personal records with their sixth and eighth-place tallies of 326.80 and 299.20 points.
Sophomore Emily Wetzel earned her first points off a springboard at Big Ten's with an 11th-place score of 275.80 points, and junior Lauren Hallyburton improved from 16th place last season to finish 14th tonight with 265.20 points.
"The team performed up to its potential and was simply remarkable tonight," said Purdue diving coach Adam Soldati. "We get better the higher we go. The platform is a bit easier because we rely more on strength and focus rather than the rhythm of the springboard."
In the competition pool, the Boilermakers had a much better night than Thursday.
"It was a positive day," said women's head coach Cathy Wright-Eger. "Our effort was three times that of yesterday's. Now, we have to come back and do it again one more time."
Purdue's top event was the 100-yard breaststroke, which featured three Boilermakers reaching the finals. Junior Jennifer Lavers was seventh in 1:04.15, freshman Leah Pierce recorded a lifetime best with her 10th-place mark of 1:03.45 and junior Shannon Grace came in 14th with a 1:04.65.
Senior Carlene Takaki looks more than ready to defend her 200 fly crown Saturday as she claimed fourth place in the 100 fly with a NCAA provisional cut of 54.51, and helped the 200 medley relay out to a sixth-place time of 1:44.27. Takaki's 50-yard split on that relay was clocked at 25.15.
Stacie Lesneski finished 14th in the 400 individual medley, lowering her prelim time of 4:22.45 to 4:21.34. And in the night's final event, the Boilermakers placed ninth in the 800 free relay, completing the course in 7:29.38; the relay was comprised of Katharine Telfer, Leah Henninger, Nicole Weatherman and Susan Hentschel.
Purdue stands a good chance of holding onto sixth place Saturday if it can duplicate last season's results. A total of 13 individual Boilermakers scored on the final day in 2006, including three in the 200 breast and 200 fly, and five off the tower. Additionally, Purdue placed fifth in the meet-closing 400 free relay.
Saturday's action in Minneapolis begins at noon EST with prelims. Finals start at 8 p.m. EST.