Hepburn posted the first NE10 Championship in the program's two-year history tonight (PHOTO BY Ben Stockwell)

Hepburn wins program's first gold medal with 100-breaststroke win
Stockwell takes third in 100-yard backstroke

NE10 Swimming Championship Recap Day 3

NEW HAVEN, Conn. (February 19, 2022) – Stonehill College made more history on day three of the 2022 Northeast-10 Conference Women's Swimming & Diving Championships, hosted by Southern Connecticut State University, with two podium finishes, including the program's first event win, at Hutchison Natatorium today.

Freshman Jami Hepburn made program history by posting the first individual win with her first-place finish in the 100-yard breaststroke, earning the first podium finish in program history as well. Sophomore Sydney Stockwell joined Hepburn as a podium finisher, finishing third in the 100-yard backstroke.

Stonehill saw seven compete in individual finals tonight, with two more relays, and the Skyhawks remain in seventh place in the team standings with 222 points heading into the Championships final day. Defending and 13-time champions Southern Connecticut State leads the way with 649 points, with Assumption University (502) second and Bentley University (485) third. The Skyhawks are 50 points behind sixth place Pace University (239) and lead Adelphi University (182) and Saint Michael's College (153). 

Highlights

• Stockwell finished third in the 100 backstroke and was also fourth in the 100 butterfly (PHOTO BY Ben Stockwell/NE10)

  Hepburn won the first NE10 Championship in program history with her first-place finish in the 100-yard breaststroke in 1:06.33 after qualifying first in the morning prelims in a school-record 1:06.09. She edged Bentley University sophomore Emily Blatt (1:07.08) by 0.27-seconds. Freshman Sharlotte Lundell finished fifth in the B-Final in 1:10.68 to finish 13^th overall after qualifying 13^th out of 29 entries in 1:10.85.
• Stockwell joined Hepburn in earning a podium finish tonight, taking third in the 100-yard backstroke in a school-record 58.60-seconds – just 0.23 behind winner Mackenzie Day (58.37) of Assumption University, with Assumption's Faith Somody (58.48) second in a final that saw top seven separated by just 1.01-seconds. Stockwell qualified third for the final with a time of 59.12-seconds in the morning prelims.
• Stonehill qualified three for finals in the 100-backstroke overall and freshman Sofiya Gobora won the B-final in 1:00.20 after qualifying 10^th in 1:01.29, while junior Nika Sokolova finished fourth in 1:01.56 (12^th overall) after qualifying 12^th in 1:01.34.
• Stockwell opened the night with a fourth-place finish in the 100-yard butterfly in 59.12-seconds – just 0.74-seconds off the podium. She tied for third in the morning prelims in a school-record 58.88-seconds. Sophomore Katie Keating finished fourth in the B-final in 1:01.02 (12^th overall) after qualifying 12^th in 1:01.26 this morning.

• Gobora won the B-final for the 100 backstroke (PHOTO BY Jan Volk/SportsPix)

  Stonehill also had another school-record performance from a medley relay after its 400-yard medley finished fourth on Friday (school-record 4:00.00), finishing fourth tonight in the 200-yard medley relay in a record 1:50.08 – 0.19 off the podium. Stockwell swam the opening backstroke leg in 27.82-seconds, before Hepburn put the Skyhawks in the lead with a 30.02 breaststroke split, and then Lundell completed the butterfly leg in 26.57-seconds, before Gobora swam the freestyle anchor in 25.71.

More Stonehill Results

• Stonehill's B relay finished fourth (20^th overall) in the opening heat of the 200-yard medley relay in 1:55.33. Sokolova swam the opening backstroke leg in 29.05-seconds, followed by Conley with a 32.70 split in the breaststroke leg, and then Keating completed the butterfly leg in 27.30-seconds and then freshman Julie Mastroianni posted a 26.28-second split on the freestyle anchor.
• Mastroianni placed 17^th out of 29 entries in the 200-yard freestyle this morning in a school-record 2:03.84, finishing as the first alternate for a spot in the finals. Junior Maggie Timmoney placed 26^th in 2:17.55.

Up Next

The NE10 Swimming & Diving Championships conclude on Sunday, with prelims starting at 9:45 a.m., and the finals starting at 6 p.m.

For the latest on Stonehill Athletics, follow the Skyhawks via social media on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram. Fans can also download the Stonehill Skyhawks "Front Row" mobile app, powered by PrestoSports, on iTunes and the Android Market.