Boxscore

FAIRFAX, Va. – Hans Gillan broke the Colonial Athletic Association record in the 100-butterfly and became a provisional qualifier for the NCAA meet as the junior standout led the University of Delaware swimmers on the third day of the CAA Championship meet hosted by George Mason at the Jim McKay Natatorium.

During the 100-butterfly, Gillan blew away the field and set new conference and school records after clocking in at 47.35. His time not only smashed the old CAA mark of 48.44 set by James Madison’s Mark Gabriele in 1995, but it also allowed him to become a provisional qualifier for the NCAA meet after trumping the ‘B’ standard.

Highlighted by his performance, the men improved to 4th place in the standings with 319 points. The women remained in seventh with 224. UNC Wilmington leads the men after earning 469 points, while Towson is ahead in the women’s standings with 471.

On the women’s side, Emily Smathers (above) finished fourth in the 100-backstroke during the finals following a preliminary run that saw her shave a full second off her own school record with a time of 56.34.

Sophomore standout Marianne Flynn also brought home a top-five finish after placing fifth in the 100-breaststroke with a school-record time of 1:03.45. She was joined in the event by Meghan Barber and Hannah Facchine, who came in 10th and 16th, respectively.

Stephanie Dodd also nabbed a school record during her seventh-place showing in the 400-individual medley. She cut a second off Sara Peffer’s five-year-old record after posting a time of 4:24.03 in the finals.

Cortney Barry continued the assault on the record books, lowering her own 200-freestyle mark set during the opening night of the meet. She eventually placed 10th in the event with a time of 1:50.43.

Smathers, Flynn, Sarah Begley, and Maryann Walker also took down the school record in the 400-medley relay after the foursome finished fifth in the event with a time of 3:46.73.

Begley also led all Delaware competitors in the 100-butterfly after finishing 13th, while Walker notched a ninth place showing in the 100-backstroke.

Among other Delaware participants, Shannon Burke had a strong day after placing sixth in the 1-meter dive, while Emily Watts touched the wall in 10th place during the 100-backstroke.

Along with Gillan’s historic swim, the men saw four other records fall on Friday.

Josh Hyman opened up the day by clipping nine seconds off his own record in the 400-individual medley with a time of 3:56.03 in the preliminaries. The freshman standout eventually finished third in the event.

John Ohlhaver also captured a third-place finish after posting a time of 1:40.03 in the finals of the 200-freestyle. The senior was followed closely by teammate Robert MacLeish, who finished fourth after setting a new school record in the event during the preliminaries with a time of 1:39.85.

Grady Carter later placed fourth in the 100-backstroke after setting a new program mark in the event after clocking in at 49.90 during the preliminaries.

Carter, Hyman, Gillan, and Craig Young then teamed up to finish the day with a third-place showing in the 400-medley relay. The group broke the school-record in the event after taking six seconds off the old mark with a time of 3:18.39.

The Hens also earned two top-10 finishes in the men’s 100-breaststroke after Ross Buckwalter placed ninth and Nick Bonifield came in 10th.

The championship meet will conclude tomorrow with the finals of the 100- and 1,650 freestyles, 200-backstroke, 200-breaststroke, 200-butterfly, 400-freestyle relay, and men’s 3-meter dive.

WOMEN’S AGATE:

Standings After Day 3: 1. Towson – 471. 2. George Mason – 370. 3. William & Mary – 367. 4. UNC Wilmington – 319.5. 5. James Madison – 293. 6. Old Dominion – 233.5. 7. Delaware – 224. 8. Northeastern – 176. 9. Drexel – 112.

Delaware Competitors: 4th Place – Emily Smathers (100-Backstroke, 56.45). 5th Place – Marianne Flynn (100-Breaststroke, 1:03.45); 400-Medley Relay (Smathers, Flynn, Begley, Walker, 3:46.73). 6th Place – Shannon Burke (1-Meter Dive, 246.20). 7th Place – Stephanie Dodd (400-IM, 4:24.03). 9th Place – Maryann Walker (100-Backstroke, 57.40). 10th Place – Cortney Barry (200-Freestyle, 1:50.43); Meghan Barber (100-Breaststroke, 1:04.59); Emily Watts (100-Backstroke, 57.66). 13th Place – Sarah Begley (100-Butterfly, 56.23). 14th Place – Emily Smathers (100-Butterfly, 56.35). 16th Place – Lauren Guntner (400-IM, 4:33.62); Hannah Facchine (100-Breaststroke, 1:06.14).