Webster, NY - Freshman Tyler Nichols (Spencerport, NY), junior Stephen Maxwell (Latham, NY) and seniors Kimberly Stillittano (Binghamton, NY) and Emma Bonan (Queensbury, NY) each came within eyelashes of qualifying for the finals in their respective events for the Clarkson University Swim team on Thursday, but the Golden Knights had to settle for picking up points in the relay events on the second day of the UNYSCSA Championships at the Webster Aquatic Center.

The Golden Knights' men currently stand in 12th place with 125 points, while the women are 14th with 86 points. Clarkson looks to pick up the pace on Friday and Saturday before closing out the meet.

Nichols was the closest competitor for the Knights, placing 26th in the 400 individual medley with a time of 4:32.28. Maxwell was one spot lower in the 100 butterfly in 55.37 seconds and was joined by other near misses in Aaron Kreher (Clarence, NY), who came in 33rd, Nate Menapace (Baldwinsville, NY), who finished 37th, and Liam Sharkey (Malta, NY), who took 39th. Clarkson also had several solid performances in the 200 freestyle, led by freshmen Raymond Bailey (Galway, NY) and Nick Hens (Liverpool, NY), who took 34th and 37th place, respectively. Also competing in the 200 freestyle were Sean Parnett (Clifton Park, NY), who finished 40th, Mike Tarsel (Baldwinsville, NY), who placed 44th, and Paul Telesca (Liverpool, NY), who came in 46th. Paul Kreppel (Clarence, NY), Mitchell Maciuba (Clarence, NY), and Nick Clemens (Lowville, NY) all placed in the 50s in the 200 free.

Clarkson earned all of its points from the two relays on Thursday, taking ninth in the 400 medley relay. Mike Rowe (Glenville, NY), Chris Plummer (Spencerport, NY), Maxwell and Telesca headed the team that finished the event in 3:39.61 for 40 points. The Knights' "B" team of Maxwell, Aaron Parysek (Spencerport, NY), Kreher, and Maciuba just missed the cut after finishing 21st in the preliminaries. In the 200 freestyle relay, both squads gained points for the Knights with Kreher, Maciuba, Tarsel, and Telesca leading the way for a 10th place showing in 1:29.54. The second squad of Parnett, Clemens, Bailey and Sharkey came in 24th with a time of 1:31.91.

On the women's side, Stillittano was the lone competitor in the 400 individual medley, and she finished just outside the finals with a 27th-place end in 5:10.46. Freshmen Emily Dreisbach (Charlton, NY) and Jaclyn Yeaton (Merrimack, NH) were in the same boat, coming in 35th and 44th, respectively in the 100 butterfly. However, it was Emma Bonan who came the closest to the finals, taking 26th with a time of 2:03.07 in the 200 freestyle to come up two spots short. Kelly Mulvehill (Penfield, NY) was next for the Knights in that event, taking 44th. The rest of Clarkson's swimmers finished 50th or below, including Courtney Karszes (Stanley, NY), Deonna Coleman (Derby, NY), Colleen Daly (Manlius, NY), Abby Luber (Camillus, NY), and Katrina Smith (Ballston Spa, NY).

Just like the men, Clarkson's women gained points in the relays on Thursday. The women picked up points for 12th in the 200 freestyle relay with a time of 1:45.38, thanks to the efforts of Dreisbach, Bonan, Jillian Brown (Kenmore, NY), and Kelly Ludeke (Burnt Hills, NY). Outside the finals in 25th place during the preliminaries were Caitlin Joyce (Walden, NY), Kelsey Jones (Kattskill Bay, NY), Coleman and Luber. In the 400 medley relay, the Knights team of Joyce, Lindsey Borakove (New York, NY), Dreisbach, and Brown scored a 13th-place finish in 4:26.35. Jones, Borakove, Bonan and Luber placed 26th in the preliminaries.