February 8, 2015
Virginia Tech Invitational closes out the regular season for the H2Okies
Five Tech swimmers pickup first-place finishes
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NCAA Championships (Women's)
Virginia Tech

BLACKSBURG - The Virginia Tech men’s and women’s swimming teams concluded the Virginia Tech Invitational Sunday night by winning five races at the Christiansburg Aquatic Center.

“The future is real bright for some of these youngsters who continue to emerge,” head coach Ned Skinner said. “We said congratulations to four seniors, and it was great that the last four swims of the meet featured our seniors. Katie Rogers, Emily Ryczek, Jayme Katis and Kevin Hunt all got to end their careers on a high note. It felt good to honor them for all they’ve done.”

The invitational meet also featured Penn State, Virginia, Arkansas (women), Towson and the College of Charleston.

The H2Okies rested their ACC Championship squad, allowing others to take the stage and shine. For four Tech seniors - Rogers, Ryczek, Katis and Hunt - it was their last meet of their careers.

Rogers finished second in the 200 fly and set a new personal-record with a time of 2:03.64. Ryczek picked up a win in the last women’s race of the day, the 100 free, touching the wall in 50.29. Only a two spots behind her in the same race, Katis finished third with a personal-record time of 51.68.

Hunt closed out the weekend, taking second in the final race, swimming the 100 free in 45.19.

The H2Okies also earned first-place finishes from Peter Conzola, who won the 200 back with a time of 1:46.54, Brandon Tutty, who won the 100 breast in 55.56, David Wang, who won the 200 fly in 1:51.93 and M.J. Ulrich, who won the 100 breast with a time of 1:03.13.

Tech’s most dominant race of the evening, the men’s 100 breast, saw Tutty take first, Grayson Smith finish second (55.63) and Eric Delmonte take third (55.88). Lauren Buckworth also earned a second-place finish when she swam the 100 fly in 56.79.

There were no team scores in the invitational and no diving competition.

The H2Okies are now into the championship portion of the season, with only the ACC Championships, the NCAA Zone Diving Championships and the NCAA Championships remaining on the schedule. The women’s ACC Championships will be on February 18-21 and the men’s ACC Championships will be on February 25-28, both in Atlanta, Georgia.

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