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2024 Women’s MAC Champs Day 1: Maier’s 1:43.90 Sets New Record; DQ Raises Controversy

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By Spencer Penland on SwimSwam

2024 MID-AMERICAN CONFERENCE CHAMPIONSHIPS

TEAM STANDINGS THRU DAY 1

  1. Akron/Miami (OH) – 74
  2. –
  3. Ohio – 64
  4. Buffalo/Ball State – 58
  5. –
  6. Eastern Michigan – 52
  7. Toledo – 48
  8. Bowling Green – 22

The first day of the 2024 Women’s MAC Championships is in the books. As always, the first day of the meet featured only the 200 medley and 800 free relays, which means the team scores are, of course, very tight currently. Akron and Miami (OH) are tied for 1st at the end of Wednesday night, each having scored 74 points through winning a relay and coming in 2nd in the other.

The meet kicked off with an Akron win in the 200 medley relay. The team of Maddy Gatrall (24.66), Sara Bozso (27.54), Abby Daniel (22.83), and Rebecca Reid (22.41) combined for a 1:37.54, beating out Miami’s team by just 0.10 seconds. Notably, Miami’s Madeline Padavic was faster than Gatrall on backstroke, swimming a 24.36. The Redhawks also benefitted from a huge anchor by Nicole Maier, who came flying home in 21.79. Miami’s 1:37.54 marks a new program record for the Redhawks.

Maier would go on to be critical in Miami’s victory in the 800 free relay as well. She led Miami off with a sizzling 1:43.90, which not only marked a new career best for Maier, but set a new MAC record as well. Maier held the previous conference record at 1:44.50, meaning last night she took the record under 1:44 for the first time. Behind Maier’s incredible lead-off, Julia Waechter (1:48.51), Kaylin Herbet (1:48.44), and Greta Kolbeck (1:45.30) made up the rest of Miami’s relay, getting the Redhawks into the finish in 7:06.15. That 7:06.15 marked a new MAC record as well, taking the down the previous mark of 7:06.81, which Akron set back in 2019.

Akron’s 800 free relay would come in 2nd in 7:08.87. Weronika Gorecka, who set the MAC Championship record in the 200 free at last year’s meet, led off in 1:45.55. Other notable splits included Ohio freshman Zita Szoke, who led off her relay in 1:46.15.

Bowling Green was DQ’d in the 800 free relay for an early takeoff on the 3rd leg. The timing system shows that exchange did have a registered reaction time of -0.01 seconds, making that DQ justified and correct based on the rules (presuming the starting point of the pads are 0.00, which some are). Where this seemingly run-of-the-mill DQ takes an odd turn is that the results which were originally posted last night, which you can view here, showed Bowling Green as not the only team to have an early takeoff. On that initial set of results, Akron had a -0.01 exchange of their own on their 3rd leg, as well as a -0.15 exchange on the 2nd leg. Additionally, those results showed Buffalo with a -0.16 exchange on their 2nd leg.

Though those results showed 3 teams with early takeoffs, only Bowling Green was disqualified. SwimSwam reached out to the MAC asking for clarification on why BGSU was the only team to be disqualified, but we didn’t receive a response. Now, there is a new set of a results published on the meet page, one that no longer shows the early takeoffs from Akron and Buffalo. Akron’s -0.15 now shows as a +0.19, while their -0.01 is now a +0.23. Buffalo’s former -0.16 now shows up as a +0.49. It wouldn’t be hard to believe that the reaction time system was having an issue last night, except that it’s very odd that the only reaction times that changed from the old results to the new ones are the 2 negative Akron RTs, and Buffalo’s negative jump. Every other reaction time in both events, including Bowling Green’s -0.01 on the 800 free, stayed exactly the same. SwimSwam has asked for further explanation on the dueling sets of results, but has not yet received a response from the MAC.

On deck on Thursday morning, swimmers have apparently been told that the reaction times were changed because the touch-pads were hit by athletes outside of the exchange, though it would be unusual for that extraneous touch to have occurred a quarter-second or so from the real touch, which is what the change in reaction times would imply.

 

SwimSwam: 2024 Women’s MAC Champs Day 1: Maier’s 1:43.90 Sets New Record; DQ Raises Controversy

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