BOSTON, Mass. – Saint Joseph's College kicked off the 2016 Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Swimming and Diving Championship at Simmons College on Saturday. The women capped the first day of the two-day event in fourth place with 196 points. The men, competing in the GNAC Men's Swimming and Diving Invitational, are currently in fifth with 15 points through 18 events.

RECAP – WOMEN:

Through 21 events on the women's side, Simmons College – winners of 11-consecutive GNAC Championships – are comfortably in the lead with 586 points while Regis College is in second with 306 and Norwich sits in third with 221 points. Following Saint Joseph's, Husson University is in fifth (166), University of Saint Joseph is sixth (147), and Elms College is seventh (114).

For Saint Joseph's, 10 individuals have combined to appear in 17 finals races and a pair of relay finals through the first day of action.

SJC HIGHLIGHTS:

• Emily Roy (Sidney, Maine), Autumn Nostrom (Lyman, Maine), Julia Rowlett (Saco, Maine) and Alexis Coiley (Fairfield, Maine) raced to a third-place finish in the 400-Medley relay with a 4:37.54 time
• Erin Weir (North Andover, Mass.), Coiley, Nostrom, and Alicia Robinson (Gorham, Maine) posted a fifth-place effort with a 1:53.14 time in the 200-Free relay
• Coiley finished fourth in the 500-Free (5:50.35) event and seventh in the 200-Free (2:10.18) race
• Roy placed fifth in the 200-Back (2:22.72) and also advanced to the finals in the 200-IM (2:32.19, 11th)
• Rowlett was seventh in the 200-Back (2:26.92) and eighth in the 100-Fly (1:09.46)
• Seniors Lauren Halvorsen (South Portland, Maine) and Lauren Prue (Glenburn, Maine) posted eighth-place finishes in the 500-Free (6:01.12) and 100-Breast (1:21.43) events, respectively

RECAP – MEN:

Through 18 events on the men's docket, Norwich University – winners of five-straight GNAC Invitational titles – is again in the top slot with 158 points while Regis University is within striking distance with 105 points. Elms College (50), Husson University (23) and Saint Joseph's round out the remainder of the men's five-team field.

For the Monks, two individuals have advanced to the finals thus far while the team has also raced in one relay final.

SJC HIGHLIGHTS:

• Sophomore Stephen Quinlan (Andover, Mass.) posted a third-place finish with a 58.93 time in the 100-Fly
• Sophomore Zack Gryskwicz (Standish, Maine) finished eighth in the 500-Free with a 5:38.44 performance
• Austin Bear (Hanover, Maine), Gryskwicz, Madison Bodine (South China, Maine) and Quinlan raced to a fifth-place finish in the 200-Free relay (1:43.63)

NEXT!

The action resumes – and concludes, later in the day – tomorrow with the preliminary events starting at 9:30 AM and the finals kicking off at 4:00 PM.

#GOMONKS

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Saint Joseph's College is Maine's only Catholic liberal arts college, providing a supportive, personalized and career-focused education for more than 100 years. From its 474-acre campus on the shores of Sebago Lake, the College offers more than 40 undergraduate programs to a population of approximately 1,000 students. Saint Joseph's College Online provides certificates, undergraduate and advanced degrees for working adults through an online learning program. For more, visit www.sjcme.edu.