Fort Lauderdale, Fla. – The Florida Tech women's swimming program returned to action on Friday at Day One of the Shark Invitational at the NSU Aquatic Center.
 
Through the first evening of competition, the Panthers stand in third place out of eight teams with a point total of 237. 
 
Elizabeth Brewer Tech's top finisher in the 1000 Free with a time of 10:51.93 earning 11 points while  Katherine Helminiak placed right behind her with a time of 10:55.67, earning nine points for the team in the process. Leah Fonnotto was next to the line with a time of 10:59.86, which earned Florida Tech seven points. 
 
Maja Malarz continued her strong start by finishing eighth out of 56 swimmers in the 200 IM with a time of 2:10.23 that earned the team 14 points. Alex Knodel (2:14.47, 17^th place) added four points from the event, while Casey Holder (2:15.78, 21^st) contributed three. 
 
Debora Xavier was the top Panther finisher in the 50 Free, as her 24.41 time tied for fifth out of 67 swimmers and earned 14 points. Rae Ann Dressel (24.74, 15^th place) added another six points to the team total in the event and Christina Ramirez (24.90, 19^th place) tallied four. 
 
Ramirez added to her run of impressive performances by finishing 10^th out of 42 competitiors in the 100 Fly, as her time of 58.34 was good for 12 points. Torie Whitbeck finished just behind Ramirez with a time of 58.45, which earned her 13^th place and nine points. Samantha Bullard's efforts (59.31, 17^th place) saw her add five points to Tech's tally.
 
Knodel posted Florida Tech's best time in the 400 IM as her 4:42.17 finish was good for eighth place out of 28 swimmers and 11 points. Kiera Ceely's time of 4:46.32 saw her finish 12^th and grab seven points.
 
The 200 Free saw Helminiak finish 10^th out of 63 competitors thanks to a 1:55.90 time that earned the team 12 points. Malarz's 1:57.33 effort gave her 15^th place and six points, while Whitbeck grabbed 22^nd and three points thanks to her finish of 1:58.71. 
 
In relay action, the team of Whitbeck, Dressel, Ramirez and Xavier finished fourth in a 200 Medley of 25 different teams with a time of 1:46.74, which earned 30 points for the Panthers. The squad of Miranda Olhasso, Holder, Brynn Romberger and Mina Lynch collected 22 points with their 1:50.51 time earning 10^th place.
 
Another 30 points and fourth place finish would be taken in the 400 Free through the group of Xavier, Ramirez, Malarz and Helminiak with a 3:32.22 time. The quartet of Dressel, Holder, Bullard and Romberger collected 18 points with their 3:40.90 time earning 12^th place. 
 
Up Next:
The Panthers will have a quick turnaround as the second and final day of the Shark Invitational will begin tomorrow at 9:30 A.M.

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