SAN ANTONIO – The Trinity University men's swimming & diving team delivered a strong showing against NCAA Division I University of the Incarnate Word on Saturday, losing 183-99 despite multiple top five finishes highlighting their efforts.
Luke Fender (Jackson, Miss. / St. Andrew's Episcopal) starred in the distance events, winning the 1000-yard freestyle with a time of 9:40.47 and taking second in the 500-yard freestyle in 4:39.50.
Nathan Perez (Alpharetta, Ga. / Johns Creek) contributed with a fourth-place finish in the 500-yard freestyle (4:53.51).
In the 400-yard individual medley,
Grant Bibza (Southlake, Texas / Carroll) led Trinity with a second-place time of 4:13.13, followed closely by
John Key (El Paso, Texas / Franklin) in third (4:14.87) and
Ryan O'Leary (Austin, Texas / Austin) in fourth (4:17.50). Bibza also placed second in the 200-yard breaststroke with a 2:10.61, narrowly edging out O'Leary, who finished third (2:10.69).
Trinity's sprinters were highlighted by
Trace Briones (San Antonio, Texas / Health Careers), who placed third in the 50-yard freestyle (21.63).
William Walker (Houston, Texas / Westside) added a fifth-place finish in the 100-yard butterfly (52.11).
On the boards,
Max Rolla-Mullis (Ann Arbor, Mich. / Pioneer) dominated with first place finishes in the 1-meter (236.40) and 3-meter (238.80) diving events, while
Andrew Ngo (Houston, Texas / Cypress Creek) added a second-place finish in the 1-meter (151.88).
In the relay competition, the 200-yard freestyle relay team of Walker, Perez, Briones, and
Daniel Itkins (Houston, Texas / The Village School) placed fourth with a time of 1:27.01.
Coach Speak
"The team score does not tell the whole story here," admitted Head Coach
Cathleen Pruden. "A few swims were 'best ever dual meet' times and 'better than this time last year' times. A few details some swimmers have been working on executing finally came together today. This team is excited for taper after one more week of work!"
Up Next
Today marked Trinity's final tune-up ahead of the Southern Collegiate Athletic Conference Championships, which will be held Wednesday to Saturday, February 12-15, at the Garland ISD Natatorium in Garland, Texas. The Tigers will look to defend last year's SCAC Championship.
