The University of Redlands swimming & diving teams picked up momentum ahead of the Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) Championships with a competitive outing on Saturday at Whittier College. The Bulldog women recorded a 176-108 win over the Poets and also topped the Cal Lutheran University Regals by a score of 199-97. The Redlands men cruised to a 234-46 victory over Whittier but fell short in a 142-151 decision to CLU.
The women set the tone for the successful day by winning the 200 Medley Relay with a time of 1:53.30. First-year Courtney Prefontaine (Laguna Niguel, CA), junior Julia Hagenbaumer (Naperville, IL), first-year Sydney Nakagawa (Vancouver, WA), and senior Wendy McAleer (Simi Valley, CA) joined forces for the solid start to the meet. In addition, Hagenbaumer, first-year Sarah Martin (Tualatin, OR), and first-year Hanna Parker (Seattle, WA) teamed up for a Bulldog sweep in the 100 Breast, beginning with Hagenbaumer's time of 1:08.46. McAleer led another Maroon and Gray sweep in the 200 Individual Medley with a mark of 2:15.39, as sophomore Olivia Cano (Dublin, CA) quickly followed in 2:16.13 and Nakagawa finished third with a time of 2:19.09.
In the 200 Breast, it was a race to the finish, as first-year Madison Southmayd (Anthem, AZ) pulled away for a first-place time of 2:35.49.
On the diving boards, junior Sami Scarano (Boulder, CO) took third with a score of 194.00 in the one-meter event. She recorded a score of 211.05 off the three-meter board for second place.
For the men, senior Aaron Bauer (Garden, Grove, CA won the 50 Free with a time of 21.82 while taking second in the 200 Free by completing the race in 1:47.97. He also combined efforts with junior Carson Brett (Exeter, CA), junior Bryce Hurick (Exeter, CA), and first-year Samuel Ayers (Orinda, CA) for a lucrative 400 Free Relay that finished first in 3:12.49.
Sophomore Jordan Convery (Fairview, OR) touched the wall first in the 200 Fly (1:58.75) by edging his competition by .11 seconds. In the 100 Fly, he finished with a time of 53.97 for second place, while first-year Anders Stenfjord (Shoreline, WA) took third with a solid time of 54.02.
In addition, first-year Lucas Walker (Mountain View, CA) enjoyed a fruitful day with a gold-medal mark of 2:08.39 in the 200 Breast. He ended the afternoon with a 2:00.08 time in the 200 IM, which was good for second place.
Junior Jacob Miner (Antioch, CA) and sophomore Max Spiegel (Englewood, CO) split victories in the diving competition. On the three-meter board, Spiegel claimed first place with a score of 222.20, while Miner took first on the one-meter with a tally of 240.60.
Redlands looks forward to competing in the SCIAC Championships, beginning with the diving competition on Saturday, February 16, and Sunday, February 17.