Giraldi Leads Swimming & Diving at New England Invitational

WORCESTER, Mass. - Sophomore Natalie Giraldi (Bedford, N.H.) finished first in the 50-yard breaststroke to lead the Simmons College women's swimming & diving team at the New England Invitational this afternoon hosted by Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, Mass. NORTH DARTMOUTH, Mass. - Freshmen Natalie Giraldi (Bedford, N.H.) tallied 13 points and Michaela Morris (Duxbury, Mass.) scored 12 to lead the Simmons College women's swimming & diving team over host University of Massachusetts Dartmouth, 140-94, this evening in North Dartmouth, Mass. The Sharks improve to 7-2 on the season, while the Corsairs fall to 2-4. SOUTH KINGSTON, R.I. - First year Natalie Giraldi (Bedford, N.H.) won the 50-yard breaststroke crown to lead the Simmons College swimming & diving team to a third-place effort after the first day of the 2015 New England Intercollegiate Swimming & Diving Championships this evening at the Tootell Aquatic Center on the campus of University of Rhode Island in South Kingston, R.I. PITTSBURGH, Pa. - Simmons College first year Natalie Giraldi (Bedford, N.H.) placed within the top-16 to advance to tonight's Eastern College Athletic Conference Women's Swimming & Diving Championship Consolation Finals and sophomore Miriam Swisher (Albuquerque, N.M.) broke her own record in the 200-yard freestyle in this morning's preliminaries at Trees Pool on the campus of the University of Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh, Pa.
Posted: Nov 07, 2015

WORCESTER, Mass. - Sophomore Natalie Giraldi (Bedford, N.H.) finished first in the 50-yard breaststroke to lead the Simmons College women's swimming & diving team at the New England Invitational this afternoon hosted by Worcester Polytechnic Institute in Worcester, Mass.

The meet was a non-scoring meet, consisting of nine different schools, but all times are official.

Giraldi posted a mark of 31.91 to finish ahead of the field in the 50-breaststroke. She also placed third in the 100-yard breaststroke, hitting the wall at 1:10.43, just a tenth of a second out of second place.

First year Laura Simpson (Perkiomenville, Pa.) finished second in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 5:24.38, which is just under five seconds from breaking the school record and also .15 behind the race's winner. In addition, she also placed ninth in the 200-yard freestyle with a mark of 2:01.97. Fellow rookie Kerry Fleming (Northampton, Mass.) hit the wall at 56.17 to place second in the 100-yard freestyle, while junior Miriam Swisher (Albuquerque, N.M.) showed her versatility with a pair of top-six efforts. She placed fourth in the 200-yard freestyle on a time of 1:59.34, before finishing sixth in the 100-yard backstroke with a mark of 1:03.42. Junior Emmie Lindholm (Sterling, Mass.) was the fifth Shark to turn in a top-10 finish with an eighth-place showing in the 1000-yard freestyle at 12:09.96.

Simmons relay teams placed among the field's top 10 in three different events. Swisher swam the lead leg of the 400-yard freestyle relay, followed by Simpson, junior Sarah Price (New York, N.Y.) and Fleming as the anchor, who hit the wall at 3:47.63 to give the Sharks a sixth-place showing. The Sharks saw Giraldi open the 200-yard freestyle relay, preceding Simpson, Fleming and Swisher, who anchored the team and finished with a 1:42.94 mark for a seventh-place effort. The 400-yard medley relay squad posted a ninth-place time of 4:13.09 in the 400-yard medley relay. Swisher swam the first leg, followed by Giraldi, sophomore Michaela Morris (Duxbury, Mass.) and Fleming, who served as the anchor for the second time on the day.

Simmons returns to action on Saturday, November 14 when it hosts Wellesley College in dual meet action at 1:00 p.m.

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