BOYDS, Md. -- For the eighth straight year, the UMBC men's swimming and diving team earned the team championship at the America East Conference Championship Meet. For the first time since 2008, the Retriever men shared their celebration with the UMBC women, who won their third America East championship.
The UMBC men entered the final day of the championship meet with the lead and held on to that lead throughout the day's competition. The men won three events on Sunday as they finished the championship with 896.5 points while Boston University finished second with 848 points. Third place went to Binghamton University with 690.5 points. University of Maine grabbed fourth place with 324 points, just nipping Stony Brook University, which rounded out the field with 323.
The Retriever women also started their Sunday competition with a lead. The UMBC women used a pair of top finishes to maintain that lead and finish with 763 points. Boston U. took second with 658 points while New Hampshire checked in at third with 610. University of Vermont edged Binghamtonfor fourth place, posting 421 total points while Binghamton scored 406. Stony Brook (300 points) and Maine (237) finished sixth and seventh, respectively.
In addition to settling the team championship races, Sunday's action also proved to be a deciding factor in many of the individual meet awards. For the men, UMBC freshman Johan Rohtla earned Outstanding Rookie of the meet with a win in 200 backstroke as he posted a time of 1:46.80. Boston U. senior Kyle Ernst locked up Most Outstanding Swimmer honors on the men's side with a dominant performance in the 200 breaststroke. Ernst broke the America East meet record with a time of 1:59.50 and finished 2.52 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor. UMBC senior Brad Reitz earned the Coaches' Award after he won the 200 butterfly for the fourth consecutive year. Reitz is only the seventh America East man to win a single event in four straight championships.
On the women's side, New Hampshire freshman Lauren McCandless shattered the conference record in the 1650 freestyle as she went on the earn Rookie of the Meet honors. Her teammate, senior Amy Perrault, took home the Coaches' Award with a win in the 200 backstroke. UMBC junior Abbey McKenney won the 100 yard freestyle in a record time of 49.66 as she garnered the Top Swimmer of the Meet nod. McKenney was the only woman at the 2011 championship to win three individual events. Additionally, Boston U. sophomore Melinda Matyas led a Terrier sweep of the women's one-meter boards on her way to earning Most Outstanding Diver of the Meet honors.
Boston U. senior Tanner Knorr was named the Outstanding Diver of the Meet on the men's side as he took both the one- and three-meter titles.
The Coaching Staffs of the Year were awarded to Binghamton University and University of New Hampshire on the women's side and Binghamton and UMBC on the men's side.