HOUSTON - After 12 races and two diving competitions in the past two days, the San Diego State swimming and diving team has won five races, posted six B-cut times, and are leading the nine teams in the Phill Hansel Invitational in Houston, Texas. The meet wraps up on Saturday with its final six races and the platform final, all getting under way at 3 p.m. CT.
The Aztecs hold a 40-point advantage, 1,014-to-974, over the host, the University of Houston. Rice occupies third place with 766 points, Colorado State is fourth (619) and rounding out the top five is Washington State (618). In sixth to ninth are Tulane (431.5), Air Force (386), New Mexico (261.5) and North Texas (17).
On Thursday, in the first final of the three-day event, San Diego State's 200 Free Relay team of Meredith Smithbaker, Klara Thormalm, Sammy Geyer and Lizzie Menzmer finished in 1:30.15 and first place. The Aztecs teams of Evonne Stehr, Cassie Phillips, Lauren Torchiana & Cathy Cooper and Fiona Trotz-Chavez, Brynlee Busskohl, Jessie McMurray & Ashlyn Hemphill, swam the race as an exhibition and finished in times of 1:33.05 and 1:37.01, respectively.
In the 500 Free, Wilma Johansson was the first Aztec to touch the wall. She finished in 4:50.75 and ninth place. Emily Gebhardt was 18th in 4:54.59 and Ryan Dulaney was 27th in 4:59.18.
San Diego State had five swimmers finish in the top 10 of the 200 IM with Kristina Murphy clocking a B-cut time of 1:59.44 and was the second to touch the wall. She was followed by Riley Tapley in sixth (2:02.56), and Smithbaker in eighth (2:03.18) to round out the A final. Johansson was ninth and first in the B Final, in 2:01.71 and Alex Roberts was right behind her in 2:02.24 and in 10th place. Mai McKenna was the second swimmer to touch in the D Final, in a time of 2:05.71 and in 26th place.
In the 50 Free, Thormalm was second in 22.65, a B-cut time. In addition to her in the A-Final, Geyer (22.84), Menzmer (22.88), Phillips (23.26) and Mia Ryan (23.27) were third, fourth, sixth and seventh, respectively. Cooper swam in the B-Final and touched in 23:26 to grab 12th place. In a tie for 38th place and swimming in the E-Final, Torchiana and Busskohl came home in matching 24.20 times.
The 400 Medley Relay saw another Aztecs victory. Tapley, Thormalm, Phillips and Ryan finished in 3:36.59, more than four seconds ahead of the second-place team. SDSU's McKenna, Hemphill, McMurray and Torchiana swam an exhibition and finished in 4:00.67.
In the 1-meter diving competition, Lexi Letts was the best placed Aztec with a score of 261.10 and a seventh-place finish. Gillian Garcia was in 10th at 249.75 and Summer Westmoreland was 12th with a 231.65 total. Gina Cazares scored 261.10 in the B-Final and finished in 14th place while Emma Duggan, also diving in the B-Final, was 17th with a 250.00 total.
Friday's finals started off with the third relay of the meet and for the third time, San Diego State was the team to beat. Tapley, Thromalm, Phillips and Menzmer won the 200 Medley Relay in 1:37.86, more than three and a half seconds clear of the second-place finishers. Torchiana, Geyer, Smithbaker and Cooper touched in the eighth-best time, 1:43.26, but the race was declared an exhibition.
In the 400 IM, Murphy was the second swimmer to touch, in 4:15.03, which was a B-cut time. Following Murphy was McKenna, who swam a 4:26.01 and finished in 25th place.
All six Aztecs who swam the 100 Fly finished in the points. Tapley was the top San Diego State finisher in fifth in 54.19. She was followed by Menzmer with a 54.97 and in eighth place. In the B-Final Roberts was the first to touch in 54.17, Gebhardt came home in 54.30 and Lexi Anderson stopped the clock in 57.01. The three finished in ninth, 10th and 15th place. The final Aztec, in the C-Final, was Trotz-Chavez who was 23rd in 56.83.
Ryan was the first Aztec to touch the wall in the 200 Free. She came home in sixth place with a time of 1:49.34. Page Mitchell was 20th in 1:51.43. Gebhardt finished in 1:53.55 and in 23rd place and Dulaney was 28th with a 1:52.04.
Klara Thormalm won the 100 Breaststroke in 59.25, which is a B-cut time. Geyer and Murphy also swan B-cuts finishing in second in 1:00.59 and third in 1:01.55, respectively. Smithbaker won the B-Final and finished in ninth place in 1:01.90 and Stehr was 11th in 1:03.47. Competing in the C-Final, Busskohl was 20th (1:04.22) and McMurray was 23rd (1:04.89).
The 3-meter diving saw three Aztecs score. Ximena Lechuga Gonzalez was third with a score of 320.05. Letts was eighth at 262.95 and Julia Harrison was 24th with a 223.80.
Four SDSU swimmers came home in the top 15 of the 100 Back, led by Tapley who won the race in 54.49. Thormalm was third in 54.81. Roberts was 13th (56.71) and McKenna was 15th in 56.77.
In the final race of the session, the 800 Free Relay, the Aztec team of Johnnason, Gebhardt, Ryan and Dulaney was sixth in a time of 7:27.13. Smithbaker, Murphy, Torchiana and Hemphill swam as an exhibition and finished in 7:45.60.
-SDSU-
Aztecs Lead Phill Hansel Invite After Two Days
