W. Swimming ties Blue Jays with diver absent

Kathy Lawlor-Gilbert, Penn's women swimming coach, walked around Sheerr Pool looking for an explanation Friday night. She was trying to figure out why Quakers diver Naomi Stoller did not show up when Penn hosted Johns Hopkins. Exasperated, Lawlor-Gilbert and the rest of the Quakers had to settle for a tie. Stoller's absence marred Penn's finest performance of the year. The Quakers expected Friday would be the tightest contest of the season -- and they were right. Penn tied the Blue Jays, 111-111. The meet began on a sour note for Penn when Hopkins (5-4-1) took the top two places in the 200-yard medley relay, putting the Quakers (1-8-1) into an early 15-2 hole. But by showing the resiliency they have used all year, Penn gradually chipped away at the deficit. The Quakers eventually took the lead, 61-60, after sophomore Gillian Morris won the 200 butterfly. In the midst of the comeback, a selfless effort was given Penn's Carrie Van Syckel. Normally a swimmer, Van Syckel volunteered to dive in the 1-meter event in place of her missing teammate. She was able to muster only 60 points, but the four points she got for her second-place finish eventually helped the Quakers avoid a loss. "All the girls wanted to [dive]," Lawlor-Gilbert said. "I had to tell some they couldn't dive because they had less experience than Carrie, and even she had very little experience." The most exciting event of the day was the 100-yard freestyle. Quakers junior Allison Zegar and Blue Jay Portia Kreiger were neck and neck the entire race, with both swimmers losing then regaining the lead. Unfortunately for Penn, Zegar lost the slight edge she had coming off the final turn and was touched out by Kreiger, losing by three-hundredths of a second. After two more events, the Quakers opened up a nine-point lead but quickly watched it vanish during the 3-meter diving session. With no one competing, the score quickly evened because Penn was unable to score any points. Because Hopkins only had one diver, the Quakers would have been victorious if Stoller had just been able to show up and dive. With the Quakers down by five points heading into the day's final event, the 200 freestyle, things looked bleak for the Quakers. The Blue Jays jumped out to the first lead, with Kelly Vikstrom taking charge. But Penn's lone senior, Grace Tsuei, showed her leadership as she closed the gap in the second leg of the relay. Then Kristy Meyer swam a personal best in the third leg as Penn continued to narrow the gap. Then Zegar took charge. The instant she hit the water, it was clear the Quakers would win. Swimming against Hopkins's premier swimmer Ann Girvin, Zegar's powerful strokes enabled her to overtake Girvin, and seal a Penn victory for the race. But lost in the frenzy of Zegar's tremendous anchor leg, was the fact the Quakers' other relay team finished last. Thus Penn could only muster a tie for the meet. · In the finale of this weekend's doubleheader, Penn (1-8-1, 0-7 EISL) fell to Harvard (7-2, 6-0) 136-49.