The nine Ute swimmers that attended the meet broke 14 school records.
“I thought we did really well,” said Utah head coach Joe Dykstra. “All of our swimmers swam in the finals, which is nice since only the top 25 swimmers get to.”
The Utes’ best finish was produced by freshman Stina Colleou, who took third in the 200-yard breaststroke. Her time of 2:09.50 broke a school record for the event. Colleou also set a season-best mark in the 100-yard breaststroke.
While Colleou had Utah’s best result of the three-day meet, the Ute men’s relay teams had a strong performance in multiple events. Nick Soedel, Alex Fernandes, Kristian Kron and Ken Tiltges teamed up to break school records in the 200-yard freestyle relay. The group also set Utah records in the 400-yard medley relay. Soedel and Kron were joined by Jonas Holmstrom and Bence Kiraly to break a school record in the 800-yard freestyle relay. Soedel, Fernandes, Tiltges and Holmstrom broke another record in the 400-yard free relay.
“It was nice to know how we stacked up against the top swimmers,” Soedel said.
Soedel was particularly strong in his legs of the relay races, breaking his own school record in his 50-yard legs of both the 200- and 400-yard freestyle relays. Individually, Soedel set a school record in the 100-yard freestyle.
In addition to the relays, Fernandes set a school record in the 100-yard butterfly, which was good enough to qualify for an NCAA B standard. Bence Kiraly contributed to the record haul by setting a Ute record in the 200-yard butterfly.
Men weren’t the only ones to break school records over the weekend as senior Nicole Ligeza broke her own record in the 100-yard breaststroke. Ligeza also produced her best time of the year in the 200-yard individual medley, which qualified for an NCAA B standard.
Kiraly, Holmstrom and Tiltges also achieved NCAA B standards in their events.
Last weekend’s meet was not just a collegiate event. Top swimmers from around the country competed in the meet, including Natalie Coughlin, a twelve-time Olympic medalist. Utah senior Traycie Swartz was one of the Ute women who swam against Coughlin in the 50-yard freestyle. Coughlin won the event while Swartz finished in sixth, breaking a school record.
“I had to stay focused and not be reminded that Natalie Coughlin is two lanes away,” Swartz said.
The Utes will rest for the holidays before beginning their Pac-12 slate on Jan. 5 at home against Arizona State.