UCLA
Arizona
Two-Hundredths of a Second Separate #21 UCLA and #13 Arizona
November 15, 2014 | Swimming & Diving
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LOS ANGELES - A pair of races decided by one-hundredth of a second that swung to the visiting Wildcats proved to be the difference in the narrowest of margins on Friday at Spieker Aquatics Center, as #13 Arizona defeated #21 UCLA, 155-145. The Bruins won six of the 16 events, as juniors Katy Campbell and Katie Kinnear, sophomores Linnea Mack and Madison White, freshman Maria Polyakova and the 200 Freestyle Relay were victorious for the home team.
You knew it was going to be a close meet from the very first race, the 400 Medley Relay. Arizona's quartet led after each of the first two exchanges, with White just .1 behind after the initial Backstroke leg and junior Allison Wine .15 back after the Breaststroke. Senior Noelle Tarazona made up some time in the Butterfly 100 and gave the Bruins a scant .02 lead heading into the Freestyle portion with Mack, who was out-touched by the Wildcats' Taylor Schick by .01 (3:41.85-3:41.86) to give Arizona the victory. A UCLA win would have given the home team an early 11-6 lead, but instead the 14-point swing gave the Wildcats an early 13-4 edge.
Arizona gained some momentum by winning each of the next five races. In the 1000 Free, Campbell was second (9:54.68), while freshman MK Kish also earned points with a fourth-place finish (10:21.62). In the 200 Free, the Bruins got points in the second, fourth and fifth positions. Senior Monica Dornick was second with a time of 1:50.60, followed by freshman Katie Grover (1:52.72) and senior Ally Loper (1:52.92).
In the 100 Back, the Bruins had a 2-3-5 finish. White was second (55.26), Kinnear placed third (55.81) and freshman Marie-Pierre Delisle was fifth (57.82). In the 100 Breast, it was another 2-4-5 showing. Wine was second (1:02.62), senior Jessica Khojasteh (1:04.16) fourth and senior Taylor Carlson fifth (1:05.29). In the 200 Fly, the Bruins claimed the second through fourth spots. Tarazona was second at 1:59.87, out-touched for first by .08. Freshman Anna Quinn (2:01.92) and junior Arlyn Upshaw (2:03.18) closed out the trio of Bruins.
Mack got the Bruins on the winning track just prior to the first swimming break, taking the 50 Free in a time of 23.15. UCLA also earned points from third-place Dornick (23.51) and fifth-place freshman Sarah Kaunitz (24.13).
Also near the first swimming break, the initial diving event on Friday came to a conclusion with the Bruins coming out victorious. Polyakova set a UCLA-Arizona meet record with a six-dive score of 333.75 to win the 3-Meter. Arizona took each of the next three spots, while sophomore Annika Lenz was fifth (240.08).
Out of the break, Arizona claimed the 100 Free, with the Bruins finishing second, third and fifth. Mack was second (50.49), followed by Dornick (50.71) and Grover (51.98) for UCLA. White claimed the Bruins' third win of the afternoon in the 200 Back, as UCLA placed in the odd number spots. White's time of 1:58.98 set an NCAA 'B' standard, Kinnear was third (2:01.73) and Delisle finished fifth (2:04.83). The 200 Breast went to Arizona, with Khojasteh placing second (2:17.46) and Wine finishing fifth (2:25.31).
Down 117-90, the Bruins began to chip away with back-to-back wins in the 500 Free and 100 Fly. Campbell set an NCAA 'B' qualifying time of 4:46.76 to take the second-longest event of the afternoon, as Loper was third (4:58.38) and sophomore Michaela Merlihan fourth (4:59.44). In the 100 Fly, Kinnear led a 1-2 finish with a time of 54.95, while Grover was second (55.14). Tarazona also earned points with a fourth-place showing (55.59).
The 1-Meter diving event went to Arizona, with the Bruins finishing second and third. Polyakova was second with a six-dive total of 307.05, while Lenz was third at 275.40.
The penultimate event of the meet was the 200 Individual Medley and it would be another race decided by a fingernail. Arizona's Alexandra Martelle led after the first leg, Upshaw charged back to lead after the next 50, Martelle came back to lead going into the 50 Free and just held off the hard-charging Bruin 2:04.51-2:04.52. It was another 10-point swing for Arizona, which proved to be the winning margin for the visitors. Tarazona added points for the Bruins with a fourth-place finish (2:06.15).
In the final race, the Bruins came out on top in the 200 Free Relay, as the foursome of Kinnear, Mack, Khojasteh and Dornick posted a time of 1:32.47. The UCLA B quartet of White, Kaunitz, junior Madison Applegate and Grover were third at 1:35.89.
The Bruins are back in the pool on Saturday at 12 p.m. at Spieker Aquatics Center against Arizona State.
Players Mentioned
