Polyakova Finishes Third in 1M at NCAAs
March 16, 2017 | Swimming & Diving
INDIANAPOLIS -- No. 19 UCLA claimed its first points of the 2017 NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships with impressive final-round performances by divers Maria Polyakova and Eloise Belanger in the 1-meter event. Polyakova claimed third place with a score of 325.80 in the evening session, while Belanger finished third in the "B" final and 11th overall at 301.20.
In the preliminary round of Thursday's diving event, Polyakova posted a fourth-place score of 301.90 to set the stage for the final round later in the day. Belanger, meanwhile, scored 283.65 to finish ninth and just out of the "A" final. Both divers broke the 300 mark in the finals, as Polyakova's score was just 0.40 points behind Minnesota freshman Sarah Bacon for second place. Another freshman, Alison Gibson of Texas, won the event with a score of 332.60.
In the preliminary round of the 200 Free Relay, Bruins Linnea Mack, Katie Grover, Isabella Goldsmith and Sarah Kaunitz swam a 1:29.21, just four hundredths of a second slower than their school-record time set at Pac-12 Championships.
The 500 Free welcomed Sandra Soe and Katy Campbell, who swam preliminary-round times of 4:46.41 and 4:46.90, respectively. Emma Schanz (1:58.99) and Kenisha Liu (2:01.16) competed in the 200 IM during the morning session, while Linnea Mack's time of 22:58 in the 50 Free came up just short in a talented field.
The 400 Medley Relay team of Madison White, Sarah Kaunitz, Grover and Goldsmith sought to top the school-record time of 3:34.02 set at Pac-12 Championships, but clocked in at 3:36.72 in the third of five relays the Bruins are participating in during the week's action.
Friday will be another busy day for UCLA swimmers, as Bruins will take on the 400 IM, the 100 Fly and the 100 Back in individual events. The day will conclude with the 200 Medley Relay.
Polyakova will again have a chance to claim an NCAA championship, as she will take on the 3-meter diving event alongside teammates Annika Lenz and Ciara Monahan. Polyakova won the same event at last month's Pac-12 Championships, as well as at the NCAA Zone E Championships earlier this month.
The rankings after the second day of events are as follows:
1. Stanford 173
2. California 136
3. Texas 87
4. Georgia 86
5. Texas A&M 74
6. Louisville 63
7. Michigan 62
8. NC State 57
9. Virginia 53
10. Wisconsin 49
18. UCLA 22
Players Mentioned
