April 30, 2009
Stanford, Calif. - Playing host to the top synchronized swimming event of the year, Stanford got off to a strong start at the Avery Aquatic Center, the home of the 2009 U.S. Synchronized Swimming Championships. On day one, Stanford competed in the preliminaries of the free team, duet and solo competitions.
The morning began with the team competition where Stanford placed third. The Cardinal team of Erin Bell, Debbie Chen, Taylor Durand, Morgan Fuller, Maria Koroleva, Michelle Moore, Olivia Morgan and Corinne Smith finished with a score of 93.667. The top eight teams from the prelims of the free routine advanced to the finals with the technical portion on Friday and the free finals on Saturday. The prelim scores will not carry over to the finals, but will decide the seeding. The Santa Clara Aquamaids had the top score with a mark of 94.500.
Stanford had a pair of duets compete, also in the prelims of the free routine. Both duets placed inside the top eight and will advance to the finals. Koroleva and Morgan led the Cardinal duets by placing third with a score of 93.167.
Finishing tied for sixth were Chen and Durand with a score of 91.667. Both teams trailed the duet from the Santa Clara Aquamaids who had the high score of the day with a mark of 95.500.
In the solo competition Morgan placed 10th with a score of 89.333. She was just one point away from being in the top eight.
The Cardinal will be back in the pool tomorrow for the technical routines. Stanford will compete with a slightly different lineup for the team competition, while the duets and soloist will remain the same. The technical finals will account for 50 percent of the final score for the competition. The other 50 percent will come on Saturday with the finals of the free routines.