Aztecs Strong On Day One of MW Championships

COLLEGE STATION, Texas – The San Diego State swimming and diving team won the opening two swimming events and earned two of the top-five spots in the 1-meter diving event on day one of the 2022 Mountain West Championships at the Texas A&M Natatorium on the campus of Texas A&M. The Aztecs are in second place after Wednesday's competitions.
 
The first final, the 200 Medley Relay, was won by the San Diego State team of Klara Thormalm, Sammy Geyer, Cassie Phillips and Lizzie Menzmer touched the wall in a time of 1:37.71, just .21 of a second ahead of second place UNLV. It is the sixth fastest time in Mountain West Championships history, and the fourth fastest Aztec time in the event in the Championships.
 
Also competing in the 200 Medley Relay for SDSU, Alex Roberts, Jessie McMurray, Riley Tapley and Evonne Stehr posted a 1:40.83, which was the fifth fastest time among the 17 teams which swam the distance.
 
The 800 Free Relay, Mia Ryan, Wilma Johansson, Kristina Murphy and Meredith Smithbaker earned the victory in 7:14.32. The race was tight for the first 400 yards, but Murphy, who swam a 1:48.47, put the Aztecs comfortably ahead. When she handed off the Smithbaker, the anchor, the freshman cruised home in 1:49.30 to pick up the team's second win in as many races on the day.
 
In the 1-meter diving competition, in which the Aztecs posted five Zone E qualifying scores, San Diego State had two divers advance to the final. Ximena Lechuga Gonzalez, a senior, and freshman Valentina Lopez Arevalo represented the SDSU and finished in fourth and fifth place, respectively. Lechuga Gonzalez posted a 318.80, her top score of the season in the event. Lopez Arevalo, in her first Mountain West Championships, also recorded her best score of the year with a 309.20. Both were Zone E qualifying scores.
 
The Aztecs placed three divers in the consolation final, led by senior Gillian Garcia, who posted a career-best and Zone E qualifying score of 292.55 to finish in second place. Gina Cazares, also a senior, totaled 284.15, a career-high and a Zone E qualifying total, to finish in fourth place while freshman Summer Westmoreland was eighth with a 256.00, the best score of her initial collegiate campaign.
 
Additional San Diego State divers who competed were Jules Harrison, Emma Duggan and Lexi Letts. Harrison, a sophomore, compiled the best score of her collegiate career, a 265.50, which qualifies her for the Zone E Championships in the 1-meter springboard. Duggan, in her first year of college diving, posted a 254.00 and senior Letts finished with a 250.55 total.
 
The Championships continue Thursday with the 500 Free, 200 IM and 50 Free as well as the 3-meter springboard competition. Prelims start at 11 a.m. CT with the finals set to get underway at 6:30 p.m. CT. Links to streaming video as well as results from each competition can be found at www.goaztecs.com.
 
2022 Mountain West Championships
College Station, Texas
Team standings after three events (day one)
1. Nevada (236 points)
2. San Diego State (228 points)
3. Wyoming (153 points)
4. Fresno State (144 points)
5. Colorado State (115 points)
6. UNLV (104 points)
7. New Mexico (103 points)
8. Air Force (99 points)
9. San Jose State (88 points)
 
-SDSU-