Fairfax, Va. – UMBC senior Ilia Rattsev (Moscow, Russia) won the 50-yard freestyle as the Retrievers completed the first of three days of competition at the Patriot Invitational at George Mason University.
Rattsev qualified first with a morning swim of 20.50 and raced by the outstanding field in the finals, posting a time of 20.25. Sophomore Tiago Asakawa (Sumaré, Brazil) placed tenth in the event in a time of 20.74.
Retriever junior Kai Wisner (Syracuse, N.Y.) and sophomore Sam Jyawook (Franklin, Tenn.) each placed in the top eight in the 500 freestyle. Wisner touched in fifth place in a time of 4:34.08, while Jyawook came in eighth at 4:37.83.
Senior diver Ben Parker (Lawrenceville, Ga.) and freshman Will Henrickson (Ellicott City, Md./River Hill) finished 11th and 12th respectively in the 1-meter event. Parker amassed 221.25 points, while Henrickson totaled 207.30
On the ladies' side, senior Hayley Committe (Ellicott City, Md./Howard) turned in the best individual performance, placing tenth (23.90) in the 50-yard freestyle.
Senior diver Abby Biddulph (Egg Harbor City, N.J.) earned a point with a 16th place finish (202.20) on the 3-meter board.
The men amassed 121 points on the day and sit in fifth place of the eight teams competing. UNCW leads after one day with 256.50 points. The women accumulated 45 points and sit in eighth place after six events.
The competition continues on Friday and Saturday at the Jim McKay Natatorium.
