With added depth and determination, the University of Redlands men's and women's swimming & diving teams produced winning seasons that resulted in multiple school records, 11 All-Southern California Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (SCIAC) honorees, and two All-Americans. In addition, the Bulldogs went 5-3 in dual-meet competition en route to a fourth-place men's showing and a fifth-place result for the women during the conference championships.
The Maroon and Gray began the 2019-20 season with the always-exciting Bulldog Pentathlon at the Thompson Aquatic Center in mid-October. First-year Blake Eddow (Corona, CA) impressed in his collegiate debut with a five-event time of 4:34.77 that landed him in third place overall. His best finish of the meet came in the 100 Individual Medley, as he took third with a time of 47.94.
With 11 first-place showings between them, the men's and women's teams edged Concordia University-Irvine in a non-conference bout on November 2. The women gained a 21-point advantage in the final score, while the men's result came down to the final race of the day and a one-point edge. Late in the meet, the Maroon and Gray women secured a 1-2-3 finish in the 100 Breast, with senior Julia Hagenbaumer (Naperville, IL) leading the charge with her winning time of 1:08.48. Junior Olivia Cano (Dublin, CA) and sophomore Sarah Martin (Tualatin, OR) added to Redlands' score by touching the wall within two seconds of Hagenbaumer. The Bulldog men captured 11 critical points in the 200 Free Relay to snag the meet victory, with Eddow, senior Michael Talag (Lakewood, CA), junior Jack McCormick (Santa Rosa, CA), and sophomore Samuel Ayers (Orinda, CA) coming in first with a time of 1:27.61.
A week later, the Bulldogs jumped into conference action with a dominating effort against the Whittier College Poets. Among the individual events, Redlands' men swept the 50 Free, 100 Free, 200 Free, 200 IM, 200 Fly, and 200 Back. Sophomore Derrick Garcia (Orinda, CA) contributed to the team's success in the 200 Fly with his winning time of 2:04.49, which complemented his bronze finish in the 200 Free (1:52.33). Senior Benjamin Fortuin (Aurora, CO) added a first-place time of 2:02.95 in the 200 Back and a third-place mark of 2:06.12 in the 200 IM. The women also crowded the podium in the 50 Free, 100 Free, 200 Free, 200 IM, and 200 Breast, with sweeping results. Among those who contributed to two of these 1-2-3 showings, sophomore Jacqueline Setlich (Laguna Niguel, CA) came out on top with a time of 56.10 in the 100 Free and took second in the 50 Free by clocking a 26.21.
The U of R headed to Pasadena for the two-day Caltech Invitational to round out the month of November. Both teams took second place at the meet that featured three other SCIAC foes. While racking up quality points for the Maroon and Gray, Eddow earned top-three finishes in the 200 IM, 200 Free, and 400 IM with solid times of 1:58.08, 1:43.46, 4:14.78, respectively. He also joined forces with Ayers, junior Eric Forbes (Ladera Ranch, CA), and senior Matt Skinner (Lakewood, CA) in the 400 Medley Relay, which earned a second-place time of 3:33.05. Eddow, Ayers, junior Rafael Zasas (Johannesburg, South Africa), and first-year Jack Forsythe (Rancho Santa Margarita, CA) also swam a winning time of 3:08.00 in the 400 Free Relay. For the women, Hagenbaumer, Setlich, and sophomores Makenna Parenti (Rocklin, CA) and Sydney Nakagawa (Vancouver, WA) began the meet in impressive fashion by winning the 400 Medley Relay with a time of 3:59.65. Hagenbaumer added a gold-medal performance in the 100 Breast when she touched the wall in 1:06.28, while Parenti uncorked a first-place time of 2:10.64 in the 200 Fly. In addition, first-year Gaby Hayon (Westlake Village, CA) fired off a winning time of 5:19.34 in the 500 Free, with senior Taylor Cadile (San Jose, CA) following in third place with a time of 5:22.96.
After falling to Simon Fraser University (CAN) and Pomona-Pitzer Colleges in early January, the Bulldogs bounced back with three wins in four matchups during conference competition. With 14 first-place efforts between the two teams, the men rolled to wins over Chapman University and Caltech, while the women took down Caltech. For the men, junior Trey Gevers (Issaquah, WA) amassed essential points as the sole competitor in either diving event. Furthermore, sophomore Tom Jansen (Pleasant Hill, CA) outswam the nearest competition by 10 seconds in the 1000 Free, resulting in his winning time of 10:19.10. For the women, senior Sami Scarano (Boulder, CO) swept the competition with a dominating performance in both diving events. She earned a final score of 243.85 points on the three-meter board while capturing 265.95 points for a near 100-point margin over the runner-up on the one-meter.
Following tough losses to Claremont-Mudd-Scripps Colleges, the Redlands swim & dive teams responded with five wins in the final six showdowns of the conference dual-meet schedule. The women topped Cal Lutheran University, Occidental College, and the University of La Verne, while the men prevailed over the latter two opponents.
Against CLU, the Bulldog women swept the one-meter board with strong results from Scarano, Parenti, and sophomore Erica Schickerling (Arlington Heights, CA), while Scarano continued to shine by winning the three-meter competition as well. Sophomore Emily Heaston (Corona, CA) stopped the clock in the 200 Free with a first-place time of 2:03.32, as Nakagawa prevailed in the 100 Back (1:00.58), 50 Free (25.12), and 200 Back (2:13.52). For the men, senior Jacob Miner (Antioch, CA) made his return from injury to the diving boards a memorable one, as he won both events with solid scores.
Redlands' wins over Occidental and La Verne came on Senior Day and served as an excellent celebration at the Thompson Aquatic Center for the soon-to-be graduating Bulldogs. Among the many highlights of the day, McCormick captured three first-place finishes, first as a member of the 200 Medley Relay (1:37.04) that also included junior Jordan Convery (Fairview, OR), Forbes, and Skinner. After winning the 50 Free in 21.64, McCormick swam the final portion of the winning 200 Free Relay, helping Talag, Ayers, and Skinner to an exciting victory in 1:26.52. Talag also won the 100 Free in 47.72, while Skinner added a gold-medal finish in the 100 Fly with a time of 52.49. Furthermore, senior Anthony Gutierrez (Ontario, CA) came in first in the 1000 Free (10:18.30). The women saw continued sweeping success from Scarano on the diving boards, as she captured her 11th and 12th first-place marks of the conference regular season. Nakagawa spearheaded a solid afternoon with individual wins in the 50 Free (24.47) and 100 Back (59.57) to go along with a first-place effort in the 200 Free Relay (1:41.19) with Setlich, sophomore Mary Tanouye (Kiel, WI), and Heaston. Hayon remained solid in the 500 Free by winning the event with a time of 5:29.86.
Scarano represented the Bulldogs well at the SCIAC Diving Championships by taking third in the three-meter competition with a score of 389.85 before winning the one-meter event with 422.80 points. These were the best finishes during her four-year career. For her success at the championships and throughout the season, she was named the SCIAC Diver of the Year.
The SCIAC Swimming Championships saw multiple school records fall for Redlands, as the men's team finished fourth in the standings and the women took fifth overall. First, Nakagawa, Hagenbaumer, Parenti, and Cano posted an All-SCIAC time of 1:45.74 in the 200 Medley Relay for the fastest in school history and third at the meet. McCormick, Forsythe, Ayers, and Skinner combined efforts for a bronze-medal finish in the 200 Free Relay with a time of 1:22.79, which also reset the Redlands standard and landed the crew among the All-Conference honorees. In addition, McCormick fired off an All-SCIAC performance in the 50 Free by stopping the clock in second place with a time of 20.91. Day three of the championships included Hagenbaumer's win in the 100 Breast with a school-record time of 1:04.04 for an All-Conference nod. She also teamed up with Nakagawa, Parenti, and Cano for a new Redlands standard in the 400 Medley Relay, as the quartet muscled out a third-place time of 3:54.07. On the final day, Ayers rallied back in the 100 Free to snag a second-place time of 45.56, which also resulted in All-SCIAC recognition. McCormick, Ayers, Zasas, and Eddow put together a second-place time of 3:03.78 in the 400 Free to earn All-Conference accolades as well. Finally, Nakagawa left her mark on the records book by registering Redlands' fastest 200 Back time at 2:06.05.
In mid-February, Scarano's incredible senior campaign continued at the NCAA Regional Diving Championships in San Antonio, Texas, where she posted the best postseason results of her career. She finished third in the one-meter competition with a score of 385.50, which was only two-and-a-half points out of second place. In what would become the final outing of her Bulldog career, Scarano made it all count by winning the three-meter diving competition with a score of 386.55. She edged Pomona-Pitzer's Emma van der Veen by 4.6 points to avenge her only defeat of the conference season. With her strong results, Scarano qualified for the NCAA Championships for the first time.
In addition, Hagenbaumer received word that she was selected to the NCAA Championships in the 100 Breast, 200 Breast, and 200 IM.
However, the championship season was cut short by the pandemic, leaving things unfinished for Scarano and Hagenbaumer. Nonetheless, the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) honored them as All-Americans in their final campaign with the Bulldogs.
Although the graduation of the Maroon and Gray's talented class creates challenges, it also welcomes new talent to step up and lead the way for whatever is next for the Redlands swim & dive teams. With Head Coach Leslie Whittemore at the helm, the program anticipates an exciting future in the form of new records, individual accomplishments, and much more.