School record holder Pat Garvey

BALTIMORE – Just like last year, sophomore Pat Garvey (Pine Bush, N.Y.) set the tone for the Niagara University men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams as he broke the school record in the 200 IM Friday night at the 2006 Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference Men’s and Women’s Swimming and Diving Championship at the Loyola Fitness and Aquatic Center at Loyola College.

Garvey swam a 1:56.65 to place fifth. His previous record, set last year in the MAAC Championship, was 1:57.74.

With the help of Garvey and 15 lifetime bests from the other Purple Eagles, the Niagara men’s team is in fourth place and the women’s team in sixth place after the first day of competition.

"I knew it is going to be a battle with Iona. It is going to be tight tomorrow and Saturday," Purple Eagle head coach Peter Thompson said. "On the women’s side, I didn’t expect to be ahead of Iona either. We need to rally and have a good day tomorrow. Tomorrow is going to be very important."

The Purple Eagle men’s squad has 100 points, 30 points behind third place Loyola College. The women’s squad scored 87 points, seven points back of fourth place Fairfield University.

Graduate student Kelly Kennedy (York, N.Y.) had the best finish of the day for Niagara when she swam a 24.65 to place third in the 50 free. For the men, sophomore James Polito (Reading, Pa.) placed sixth with a personal-best 21.65.

Another personal best came from freshman Hope Wiles (Baltimore, Md.), who finished 11th (5:19.19) in the 500 free. Graduate student Emily Zimdahl (Grand Island, N.Y./Grand Island) was 11th in one-meter diving (158.80).

In the 200 free relays, the men’s placed fourth (1:26.40) and the women fifth (1:42.04) with season bests. The Purple Eagle women’s squad finished the first day of competition with a fifth in the 400 medley relay (4:10.04) and the men were eighth (3:53.71).

Competition in the MAAC Championship continues Friday at 10 a.m.