PHOENIX – Riding a streak of 38 consecutive dual-meet victories, the San Diego State swimming and diving team added three more to that total on Friday night after dispatching Grand Canyon (147-76), Loyola Marymount (164-39) and Seattle U (165-39) during the first wave of action at the GCU Quad Meet at Fr Edward A. Reese Aquatics Center.
The Aztecs, who captured 10 of 12 events on the first day of competition, wasted no time in the very first race, as the 200 medley relay team of Evonne Stehr, Meredith Smithbaker, Lizzie Menzmer, and Avery Turney emerged triumphant with a time of 1:42.80, while the quartet of Riley Tapley, Moa Bergdahl, Mai McKenna and Lyndsey Wehr took third after clocking in at 1:44.67.
SDSU also boasted the fourth and fifth-place finishers in the event, but those results were deemed exhibitions. The foursome of Abby Storm, Christiana Williams, Emily Tenczar, and Alyssa Schiller combined for an effort of 1:45.12, while the team of Jeannette King, Jessie McMurray, Liberty Edwards, and Emily Allen followed at 1:50.18.
The Aztecs continued the momentum in the 1,650 freestyle, where Paige Mitchell was the first to touch the wall after logging a season-fast swim of 17:32.95, while Allen was fifth at 18:36.78.
SDSU experienced a near-miss in the 200 freestyle, as Turney was edged out by 0.02 seconds, finishing a close second with a 1:54.25 clocking, while Wehr (1:55.55) was third, followed by Wilma Johansson in fourth (1:56.05).
The Aztecs claimed the top two spots in the 50 freestyle, as Schiller prevailed thanks to a season-best 23.83, narrowly beating out Menzmer, who clocked in at 23.86. In addition, Storm (24.95) completed the sprint in seventh, while Tenczar (25.10) was eighth.
Shortly thereafter, SDSU flexed its muscles once again in the 200 individual medley, boasting four of the top-five placers, including Kristina Murphy, who clocked in with a winning time of 2:03.63, while Stehr finished second at 2:06.54, followed by Tapley (2:06.76) and McKenna (2:08.26), who took fourth and fifth, respectively.
The Aztecs kept rolling in the 200 butterfly, where Johansson was triumphant after a season-best swim of 2:04.53, while Menzmer wound up in fourth at 2:08.53, followed in succession by Tenczar (5th, 2:08.66) and Emily Gebhardt (6th, 2:09.34).
Not to be outdone, Smithbaker turned in a season-fast performance of her own in the 100 freestyle, touching the wall at 50.31 for another SDSU victory, while Turney followed in second with a time of 51.97.
With a cornucopia of points already secured, the Aztecs kept adding to their total after capturing the top three spots in the 100 backstroke, where Tapley was the first to touch the wall with a season-best 55.96, followed by McKenna (56.67) and Stehr (57.40), while King (58.62) took sixth.
A season-fast time was also recorded by Johansson in the 500 freestyle after she posted a winning effort of 5:04.59, while Schiller was seventh at 5:35.54.
SDSU also flashed its dominance in the 200 breaststroke, grabbing the top four finishes, including a triumphant performance by Williams, who touched the wall with a season-best clocking of 1:03.30, followed closely by Murphy (1:03.45), Smithbaker (1:03.56) and Bergdahl (1:03.74).
In the final swim of the night, the 400 freestyle relay team of King, Wehr, Gebhardt and Murphy placed second with a time of 3:29.17, while the quartet of Allen, Jessie McMurray, Mitchell and Liberty Edwards took sixth after clocking in at 3:47.54.
Meanwhile, diver Ximena Lechuga continued her brilliance with a victory in the 3-meter event after posting a zone qualifying score of 286.65 points, while Emma Duggan took second with 279.68 points, followed by Jules Harrison (236.78), who finished fourth.
The GCU Quad Meet concludes on Saturday when San Diego State engages the same three teams in a fresh set of 13 events, starting with the 400 medley relay at 11 a.m. MST/PDT.
Aztecs Roll Through Day One at GCU Quad Meet
