On Saturday October 13th, the University of the Cumberlands (UC) Men and Women's swim teams traveled to Cincinnati, Ohio to take on NCAA Division I competitor Xavier University.  Both teams did very well but were unable to compete with the depth of Xavier as they both dropped their duals.  The women's team came up short by a score of 57-36 while the men fell by a score of 63-30. 

In spite of the overall losses, there were several first place finishes in individual events. The winners were:

•          Grace Van Ryckeghem (Franklin, TN) - 1000 free (10:56.54) and 500 free (5:15.28)

•          Charlotte Parent (Braine-l'allaud, Belgium) - 200 IM (2:13.16) and 200 Fly (2:16.10)

•          Zach Johnson (Ashland, KY) - 200 backstroke - 2:00.83

•          Women's 400 medley Relay - Lizzy Horn (Wheat Ridge, CO), Melissa Peplinksi (Spokane Valley, WA), Charlotte Parent, and Felicia Williamson (Vancouver, WA) - 4:04.93

Coach Eric Skelly said, "This was a great opportunity to step up against a very good team.  We had some solid swims and we improved in a few areas.  I'm proud of how we did and now we have to get better."

Several more Patriots have also qualified for the NAIA Nationals including:

•          Natalia Garrote – 100 Freestyle

•          Zach Johnson – 100 & 200 Backstroke

•          Charlotte Parent – 200 IM & 200 Butterfly

•          Melissa Peplinski – 200 Breaststroke

•          Grace Van Ryckeghem – 500 Freestyle

•          Felicia Williamson – 200 Freestyle

The Patriots will be traveling to the University of the South in Sewanee TN November 2nd and 3rd.

For more information on the UC swimming program and other Patriot athletics, please visit www.cumberlandspatriots.com. 

_{Article provided by Rebecca Holcomb, UC Multimedia and Athletic Services Student Assistant}