CEDAR FALLS, Iowa – Opening their dual schedule for the 2017-18 season, University of Sioux Falls Swimming dropped a 166.5-99.5 decision at University of Northern Iowa on Saturday afternoon. Freshmen
Alex Sanchez Clark and
Gigi Bario each won an event to lead the Cougars.
After the 200-yard medley relay opened the competition, Sanchez Clark,
Nina Groene and
Evelyn VanDeMark swept the women's 1,000-yard freestyle. Sanchez Clark clocked the winning time at 10:52.77 while Groene turned in a 11:00.92 and Van De Mark posted a 11:01.22.
Two events later, Bario captured her first collegiate victory with the winning time of 1:00.66 in the 100-yard backstroke.
Aleah Rohde and
Tori Bailey tied for fifth at 1:05.25 to split the final point.
Opening the meet, USF took second and third in the 200-yard medley relay. In the order of backstroke, breaststroke, butterfly and freestyle, Bario,
Chantal Kasch,
Ingelin Lima, and
Jenna Krahn posted the runner-up time of 1:51.49 and Bailey,
Joelle Beachler,
Maike Doerr, and
Kyjana Webber were third at 1:52.21.
Doerr posted another top three finish in the 200 free, turning in a 1:58.73, while
Leah Eagleton placed fifth at 2:02.39. Beachler and Kasch scored for the Cougars in the 100 breaststroke with times of 1:10.85 and 1:11.24, respectively.
Adding another four points for a runner-up finish, Doerr clocked a 2:13.75 in the 200 butterfly and Sanchez Clark placed fourth at 2:20.30.
Lauren Tabbert earned a runner-up finish in the 50 free with a time of 25.22 seconds and Bailey was fourth in 26.06 seconds.
Following the break for diving, Webber posted her top finish with a 54.78-second time in the 100 free to place second. Tabbert took fourth in 55.21 seconds and Krahn split the fifth-place point with a UNI swimmer, tying at 56.21 seconds.
Michelle Hoffin and Bario took third and fourth, respectively, in the 200 back. Hoffin turned in a 2:13.94 and Bario clocked a 2:14.48 to score for the Cougars. USF placed three in the top five of the 200 breaststroke, led by Kasch's runner-up 2:31.94. Brie Lavelle was fourth at 2:42.88 and Beachler finished fifth with a time of 2:43.28.
Groene and Sanchez Clark added another top-three finish each, taking second and third, respectively, in the 500 free. Groene checked in at 5:23.72, Sanchez Clark finished in 5:26.59 and
Leah Eagleton placed fifth at 5:38.05.
Doerr added three more points with a third-place finish in 100 fly, narrowly missing second place at 1:00.50, while Van De Mark placed fourth at 1:02.90. In the 200 individual medley, Hoffin placed second with a time of 2:14.37 and Kasch clocked a 2:28.03 to take fifth.
Wrapping up the competition, Lima, Krahn, Groene and Webber placed second in the 200 free relay, turning in a 1:41.16.
USF returns to action in two weeks, hosting MSU Moorhead on Friday, Oct. 20 at 6 p.m. at the Midco Aquatic Center in Sioux Falls
