Summers's Double Gold Leads Women's Swimming to HVIAC Invitational Runner-Up

NEW ROCHELLE, N.Y. – Sophomore Morgan Summers (Bellerose, N.Y./St. Mary's) took home a pair of gold medals and collected the maximum four medals leading the St. Joseph's College (Brooklyn) women's swimming team to a runner up finish at the 2014 Hudson Valley Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Invitational Championship on Sunday morning at The College of New Rochelle Wellness Center.

Summers repeated as champion in the 100-yard backstroke (1:10.84) and edged out Sam Amberchan of Sarah Lawrence by .38 second in the 200-yard individual medley (2:39.71) in the closest event of the meet to become the first Lady Bears multiple gold medalist at the championships since assistant coach Kristen McMaster. Summers led off her 200-yard freestyle and medley relay squads to third place finishes and has now accumulated a perfect eight medals in her career.

St. Joseph's took home nine medals in total, Tina Wong (Brooklyn, N.Y./HS of Telecommunications Art and Technology) repeating as silver medalist in the 1000-yard freestyle followed closely by Haley Betancourt (New York, N.Y./St. Vincent Ferrer) for bronze.

Also collecting third place finishes were freshman Victoria Benalcazar (Astoria, N.Y./St. John's Prep) in the 50-yard freestyle (30.66), sophomore Jillian O'Hara (Brooklyn, N.Y./Bishop Kearney) in the 200-yard IM (2:46.28) and senior Jaclyn Kennedy (Breezy Point, N.Y./Fontbonne Hall) in the 500-yard freestyle (7:41.71).

Wong and O'Hara added to their individual medals a second medal for their contributions to the medley and freestyle relay squads and juniors Erin Collins (Breezy Point, N.Y./Fontbonne Hall) and Jaclyn Montana (Brooklyn, N.Y./Bay Ridge Prep) also collected two medals competing on both relays.

Sarah Lawrence College captured their fifth straight Invitational Championship title winning nine of the 11 events for a 149 point total followed by St. Joseph's with 77 points and New Rochelle with 60 points.

Following the championship, Summers, Betancourt and O'Hara were named to the 2014 HVIAC All-Conference Team.

St. Joseph's will return to the Wellness Center on Wednesday, January 29 to conclude their 2013-14 campaign in a dual meet against New Rochelle – rescheduled from last week – starting at 8 p.m.

** Correction: An earlier version of this story stated Summers was the first Lady Bear to capture two golds in the Invitational. Assistant Coach Kristen McMaster collected three golds in 2012. **