University of St. Thomas Athletics
Urkiel earns All-Conference honors on day three conference championship
2/23/2024 10:41:00 PM | Women's Swimming & Diving
Senior earns second place finish in 100 breast
MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. – It was the best kind of day for the University of St. Thomas swim and dive team. The Tommies put together some record performances in the pool, and senior Grace Urkiel (Rosemount, Minn. / Rosemount) earned some hardware along the way. Urkiel earned All-Conference honors for the first time in her career and helped St. Thomas close the day with 100 team points, within striking distance of a top-6 standing as a team.
DAY THREE: PRELIMS
Prelims treated St. Thomas kindly, as six swimmers qualified for either the "A" or "B" finals of their respective races. Grace Urkiel (Rosemount, Minn. / Rosemount) was particularly impressive, as she was the lone Tommie female swimmer to qualify for "A" finals in an event, thanks to her performance in the 100 breaststroke. The senior not only swam the fourth fastest time in prelims, but also broke her own program record, advancing to Friday night's session with a time of 1:02.10. Her teammates, Megan West (Shoreview, Minn. / Mounds View) and Annika Olson (Shakopee, Minn. / Shakopee) just missed spots in the finals, as they finished 17th and 18th respectively with times of 1:07.76 and 1:08.20.
Emily Wooden (Chino Hills, Calif. / Ayala) continued to show she's the top butterfly swimmer on the St. Thomas roster, as she qualified for "B" finals in the 100 fly. The sophomore clocked the fifth fastest time in program history, earning a top-16 place in prelims with a time of 57.15. Lily Linden (Rochester, Minn. / Century) and Maggie Kolb (Afton, Minn. / Hill-Murray) both finished in the top-30 with times of 58.20 and 59.26.
Elizabeth Bonneville (Lakeville, Minn. / Lakeville South) and Caroline Peterson (Northfield, Minn. / Northfield) were the first Tommie duo to qualify for finals in the same race, as both earned a trip to the "B" finals of the 400 IM. Bonneville swam the tenth fastest time in prelims at 4:35.92, which was five seconds faster than her seeded time of 4:40.56. Peterson also earned a top-16 time thanks to her season best time of 4:40.30. Megan Toal (San Clemente, Calif. / San Juan Hills) just missed a spot in the finals, finishing 20th with a time of 4:50.00.
Sophie Curran (Minneapolis, Minn. / Edina) and Libby Fischer (Eagan, Minn. / Visitation) qualified for "B" finals in the 100 backstroke and recorded top-10 times in program history. Curran earned a top-16 place with a time of 56.51, which ranks fifth all time, while Fischer clocked the sixth fastest time in program history of 56.94. Grace Forsberg (Rice Lake, Wis. / Rice Lake) just missed a spot in the top-16, clocking a season best time of 58.00 in the race.
The Tommies also had several swimmers compete in the 200 free, though none qualified for either the "A" or "B" finals. Most clocked season best times, including Ella Palmquist's (Dundas, Minn. / Northfield) time of 1:57.15. Sophia Hayes (Naperville, Ill. / Naperville Central) was the top finisher in the race for St. Thomas, clocking a time of 1:56.10, while Brecken Baller (Sioux City, Iowa / Sioux City North) and Mariah Reynolds (Mequon, Wis. / Homestead) both competed in the event.
DAY THREE: FINALS
It was none other than Urkiel who provided the highlight of the evening during Friday's finals session. The senior's program record in the 100 breaststroke was short lived, as she broke her own record in the finals session just a few hours later. However, that wasn't the best thing to happen to Urkiel in the event. For the entire race, the senior was neck and neck with Denver's Jessica Maeda, keeping pace with one of the Summit's best swimmers entering the final turn of the race. Urkiel was just out touched at the boards, but her time of 1:01.38 was good for second place, garnering Urkiel the first All-Conference honor of her illustrious career. The time also made the NCAA "B" cut, though the Tommies cannot compete in the National Championship this season.
Bonneville and Peterson both swam faster in the 400IM finals than the did in prelims, finishing 11th and 15th in the race respectively. Bonneville shaved two seconds off her prelim time, moving into 11th place with a time of 4:33.24. Peterson would finish in 15th thanks to her season best time of 4:37.13.
Wooden claimed 13th place in the 100 fly, earning four points towards the team's overall score thanks to her season best time of 56.73. Curran did not compete in the 100 backstroke, but Fischer finished in 16th with a time of 57.49.
UP NEXT
After three days of competition, the Tommies currently sit in eighth place as a team with 100 total team points. St. Thomas will be back in action for the final day of the 2024 Summit League Championships on Saturday, February 24. Prelims are set to begin at 10:00 a.m. at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Players Mentioned
