ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – For the fourth consecutive time, the state of New Mexico swims through Las Cruces as NM State defeated rival New Mexico 172-123 on Saturday afternoon at the Armond H. Seidler Natatorium.
The win for Head Coach
Rick Pratt's squad also marks the third-straight win inside UNM's home pool as the Aggies have yet to lose in Albuquerque since January 2020. In total, the Aggies finished with 10 individual first-place finishes in just 14 individual events against the Lobos.
After placing second and third in the 200-yard medley relay to open the event, the Aggies'
Katie Rink turned in a dominant performance to take gold in the 1000 freestyle as she reached the wall over 10 seconds before the Lobos' top finisher who placed second.
The following four races also belonged to the Aggies as they claimed nine of the possible 12 podium spots. This stretch began with a podium sweep in the 200 free as
Lindsay Puhalski,
Naomi Slee and
Dreamer Kowatch finished first, second and third, respectively.
NM State then secured the top two spots in the 100 back when
Emily Dobbins turned in a 57.75 to earn first place while
Thea Masselink out-touched UNM's Iryna Tsesiul to claim second.
Taylor Craft continued the trend of victorious Aggies as the freshman finished first in the 100 breast while
Foteini Charitou added to NM State's podium count with a third-place finish in the event.
Estel Galo and
Ellen Osthelder then held down the 200 butterfly as Galo clocked in at 2:09.61 to finish first while Osthelder's time of 2:11.38 was good for second place.
Seven events into the meet, UNM picked up its first individual win of the day in the 50 free, however, the Aggies'
Katie Rink,
Kira Brownell and
Callie Ceshker still scored points for the Crimson and White as they finished second, third and fourth, respectively.
Freshman
Mira Tinani was the lone Aggie diver to compete in today's meet and she did more than hold her own as she finished second in both the 1-meter and 3-meter events.
Following the 3-meter dive, the Aggies landed two on the podium in the 100 free as
Emily Dobbins tallied a second-place finish while
Dreamer Kowatch secured third.
The Aggies then retook control of the meet as
Lindsay Puhalski's first-place finish in the 200 back kicked off a stretch of four races in which the Aggies had the top finisher. With Puhalski pacing the group of backstrokers,
Thea Masselink followed closely behind to reach the wall second.
The ensuing event also finished with a pair of Aggies in the top two spots as
Kodi Wiman claimed first in the 200 breast while
Foteini Charitou earned a second-place finish.
Yet another Aggie sweep was in order in the 500 free as
Katie Rink,
Naomi Slee and
Estel Galo placed first, second and third, respectively, in the 10-lap race.
Faye McDonagh then helped the Aggies flex their muscles as she outpaced a group of Lobos to take the top spot in the 100 butterfly.
Later,
Lindsay Puhalski earned a second gold medal as she completed the 200 IM over four seconds quicker than the next-closest competitor. In the event, the Aggies also secured a third-place finish as
Riley Crespo helped the Aggies build on their lead.
AGGIE RESULTS
200 Medley Relay
2. L. Puhalski, Craft, Gyde, Dobbins – 1:47.39
3. Masselink, Charitou, McDonagh, Brownell – 1:49.19
1000 Free
1.
Katie Rink – 10:38.11
3.
Estel Galo – 10:48.89
5.
Bella Marthaler – 11:05.77
200 Free
1.
Lindsay Puhalski – 1:55.06
2.
Naomi Slee – 1:55.51
3.
Dreamer Kowatch – 1:55.78
5.
Lina Khiyara – 2:00.12
100 Back
1.
Emily Dobbins – 57.75
2.
Thea Masselink – 1:00.07
4.
Elizabeth Cervantes-Vanderlugt – 1:00.79
6. Bella Cratsenberg – 1:01.13
100 Breast
1.
Taylor Craft – 1:06.53
3.
Foteini Charitou – 1:07.53
4.
Kodi Wiman – 1:07.83
5.
Kathryn Gyde – 1:08.30
200 Fly
1.
Estel Galo – 2:09.61
2.
Ellen Osthelder – 2:11.38
4.
Riley Crespo – 2:19.12
50 Free
2.
Katie Rink – 24.45
3.
Kira Brownell – 24.93
4.
Callie Ceshker – 25.05
5.
Naomi Slee – 25.18
3-meter Dive
2.
Mira Tinani – 227.55
100 Free
2.
Emily Dobbins – 52.47
3.
Dreamer Kowatch – 53.72
4.
Taylor Craft – 54.33
5.
Callie Ceshker – 54.36
6.
Lina Khiyara – 54.69
7.
Elizabeth Cervantes-Vanderlugt – 54.88
8.
Kathryn Gyde – 55.38
200 Back
1.
Lindsay Puhalski – 2:07.27
2.
Thea Masselink – 2:08.86
200 Breast
1.
Kodi Wiman – 2:24.06
2.
Foteini Charitou – 2:26.58
4.
Riley Crespo – 2:31.32
6.
Bella Marthaler – 2:34.31
500 Free
1.
Katie Rink – 5:09.86
2. Naomi Sle – 5:12.47
3.
Estel Galo – 5:19.60
100 Fly
1.
Faye McDonagh – 58.01
5. Bella Cratsenberg – 1:03.06
1-meter Dive
2.
Mira Tinani – 252.15
200 IM
1.
Lindsay Puhalski – 2:10.25
3.
Riley Crespo – 2:16.17
5.
Thea Masselink – 2:17.14
6.
Lina Khiyara – 2:18.04
7.
Bella Marthaler – 2:18.05
##NM State##