University of St. Thomas Athletics
Phoenix Fall Classic
Tommies finish fifth at Phoenix Fall Invite
11/20/2023 10:07:00 AM | Women's Swimming & Diving
Grace Urkiel wins 100 breaststroke with No. 2 time in program history
CHICAGO, ILL. – Chicago treated the University of St. Thomas women's swim and dive team well. Over the past weekend, the Tommies earned multiple top-20 finishes at the University of Chicago's Phoenix Fall Invite, propelling the team to a fifth place finish. Overall, St. Thomas scored 456 total points and Grace Urkiel (Rosemount, Minn. / Rosemount) provided the highlight of the weekend. The senior won the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:03.11, the second fastest swim in program history
DAY ONE:
The Tommies got off to a rip roaring start in the 200 freestyle relay, as all four relay teams finished in the top-15 at the event. The team of Grace Forsberg (Rice Lake, Wis. / Rice Lake), Ella Palmquist (Dundas, Minn. / Northfield), Grace Urkiel (Rosemount, Minn. / Rosemount) and Libby Fischer (Eagan, Minn. / Eagan) put together their best performance of the 2023-24 season, racing to a second place national ranked NYU. The quad clocked a season best score of 1:36.46 in the race to earn second place and 44 points towards the team's overall score.
Though their times did not count, St. Thomas' other 200 freestyle relay teams earned top-15 finishes as well, all clocking times of under two minutes in the relay. That set the tone for the remainder of the day, as the Tommies earned more top-10 finishes in several events. Sophie Hayes (Naperville, Ill. / Naperville Central) continued her strong season with a 10th place finish in the 500 freestyle after qualifying for "A" finals with a season best time of 5:06.59 in prelims. Her teammate Elizabeth Bonneville (Lakeville, Minn. / Lakeville South) qualified for the "B" finals, coming in 20th place behind a season best time of 5:12.47.
In addition to finding success in the longest race of the day, St. Thomas found success in the shortest as well. After just barely squeaking into finals in the 50 free, Forsberg finished in sixth overall thanks to a time of 24.18. Fischer would finish a few places behind in 12th, as both scored for the Tommies in the fastest race of the meet.
Urkiel impressed in the 200 IM. After qualifying for "A" finals with the sixth fastest time in prelims, the senior finished in fifth after shaving two seconds from her preliminary time. Urkiel would clock a time of 2:06.73 in the race, closing in fifth place, while teammate Hanna Ryan (Blaine, Minn. / Blaine) finished in 16th with a time of 2:11.36.
St. Thomas found equal success in the final race of the day, the 400 medley relay, as it did in the first, as the "A" team earned another top-8 finish to score multiple points for the Tommies. Fischer, Urkiel, Ryan and Palmquist clocked a time of 3:53.60 in the event, closing in sixth place and earning 40 points to the team's overall score.
DAY TWO:
Urkiel's highlight came on day two, but not before she helped St. Thomas open the day with another impressive relay swim, this time in the 200 medley relay. The senior, along with teammates Fischer, Lily Linden (Rochester, Minn. / Century) and Forsberg, finished second in the race with a time of 1:45.24. That once again set the stage for the remainder of the day, as the Tommies would see several swimmers qualify for "A" finals in events, including Urkiel. The senior clocked the fastest time in prelims at 1:03.76, mere milliseconds off her school record time of 1:03.09. In finals, Urkiel looked like she was on pace to not only win the race but beat her own program record. When she touched the wall, she was the champion, finishing in 1:03.11. While not the program record, it is the second fastest time in program history, and Urkiel now owns the top-3 fastest swims in the race.
Ryan was the first individual swimmer to qualify for "A" finals on Saturday, eventually earning a 10th place finish in the 400 IM with a time of 4:40.50. Teammates Caroline Peterson (Northfield, Minn. / Northfield) and Victoria Leticia Matos Santiago (Guaynabo, Puerto Rico / Academia Maria Reina) finished 11th and 13th respectively. In the 100 butterfly, Linden, Emily Wooden (Chino Hills, Calif. / Ayala) and Rebecca Bishop (Houston, Texas / Cy-Fair) all finished in the top-20 to score points for St. Thomas, while Hayes finished 15th in the 200 freestyle Saturday afternoon.
DAY THREE:
The Tommies continued to put together strong races on day three, excelling both in long distance and short distance races. Bonneville opened the day with a 10th place finish in the 1650 free, while Makenna Monday (Grafton, Wis. / Cedarburg) scored in the 200 backstroke thanks to a time of 2:12.53.
Hayes, Fischer and Forsberg qualified for the "B" finals in the 100 freestyle, finishing in 18th 19th and 20th respectively, and Urkiel closed her strong weekend with another top-8 finish in the 200 breaststroke. The senior swam the second fastest time in prelims during the morning session and looked primed for a potential individual win. She would finish in eighth place in finals with a time of 2:23.85. Wooden also earned a top-10 finish in the 200 butterfly, and St. Thomas' top team finished in the seventh in the 400 freestyle with a time of 3:33.69.
UP NEXT
The Tommies will swim in one final dual before the new year and will do so from the comforts of their own home. St. Thomas will host Nebraska-Omaha on Saturday, December 9 at the Anderson Pool in St. Paul, Minnesota. Events are set to begin at 10:30 a.m. CT.
Players Mentioned
