MALIBU, Calif. – The San Diego State swimming and diving team continued its dominance in dual-meet competition on Thursday after posting an 83-59 decision over Pepperdine at Raleigh Runnels Memorial Pool.
With the victory, the Aztecs registered their 38th consecutive dual-meet triumph since Jan. 8, 2018, and kept their unblemished record against the Waves intact at 19-0, including a 12-0 mark in Malibu.
SDSU posted the top three scoring times in four different individual events and won both relays while boasting three of the top four divers to highlight a successful meet.
The Aztecs set the tone at the outset, grabbing the top two finishes in the 200 medley relay, including the team of Mai McKenna, Christiana Williams, Jeannette King and Avery Turney, who joined forces for a winning time of 1:45.06, while the quartet of Abigail Storm, Olivia Zamudio, Emily Tenczar and Alyssa Schiller placed second after clocking in at 1:46.90.
SDSU kept the momentum rolling in the 50 butterfly, with Lizzie Menzmer (25.25), Evonne Stehr (25.45) and Emily Gebhardt (26.11) emerging as the top three scorers, while Wilma Johansson (4th, 26.49) and Meredith Smithbaker (5th, 26.63) followed in succession but had their swims count as exhibitions along with Jessie McMurray (27.32) and Paige Mitchell (27.75).
The Aztecs also swept the top three places in the 50 backstroke, as McKenna touched the wall at 26.18, followed by Storm (26.89) and King (28.03), while Lyndsey Wehr (28.03), Turney (28.02) and Williams (29.26) completed the event as an exhibition.
Shortly thereafter, the Scarlet and Black replicated the feat in the 50 breaststroke, as Moa Bergdahl (30.18) won a closely contested finish over teammates McMurray (30.30) and Stehr (30.33), while Alex Roberts (31.46) and Liberty Edwards (32.68) swam exhibition races.
SDSU recorded the top five times in the 50 freestyle, but only the first three scores counted. Menzmer (24.01) was triumphant once again after edging Schiller (24.04), while Wehr (24.36) took third, followed by Emily Allen (24.73) and Gebhardt (25.05), who swam exhibitions along with Tenczar (25.35) Johansson (25.67) and Mitchell (25.95).
In the final swim event of the meet, the Aztecs captured the 200 freestyle relay, as the team of Gebhardt, King, Menzmer and Kristina Murphy combined for the victorious time of 1:13.01, while the quartet of Tenczar, Wehr, Stehr and Turney finished fourth at 1:23.98.
Not to be outdone, the Aztecs' Summer Westmoreland claimed the diving title on the 1-meter board after racking up 245.85 points, while Taylor Konopacke (230.63) landed in the runner-up spot, followed by Zamudio (223.65), who took fourth.
San Diego State will remain on the road for the next two days when it travels to the Central Valley for the Chick-Fil-A Invitational, Oct. 7-8, in Fresno, California.
Aztec Swim and Dive Sinks Pepperdine, 83-59
