Nov. 16, 2007

2007 Patriot Invitational Central

FAIRFAX, Va. - Two school records fell, including senior Sarah Bizer's 50-meter freestyle mark which also bested a meet record, to highlight the first day of action in the 2007 Patriot Invitational, held at the Jim McKay Natatorium on the campus of George Mason University.

After one day of competition, the George Mason women's swimming and diving team leads the eight-team field, while the men's squad sits third. The Patriot women, with a score of 276.5, hold a 24-point lead over the second-place UMBC Retrievers. On the men's side, the Patriots trail UMBC (343) and Seton Hall (186).

The 200-yard women's freestyle relay team of Mary Beth Cheslock, Katie Planchak, Courtney Cook and Bizer set a school record with a time of 1:35.61. Bizer's time of 23.43 seconds in the 50 free this evening set a new meet and school record, and was one of three individual Patriot victories on the day. In the diving competitions, Amanda Fielding won the 3-meter dive with a score of 237.55 in the finals, while Ryan Metzker took first in the men's 1-meter dive event with a 310.30 score.

All eight teams are back in action tomorrow as the Patriot Invitational continues at McKay Natatorium, with the preliminary competitions set for 10 a.m. and the finals to begin at 6 p.m.