Unlike their male counterparts, who won both meets, the No. 2 University of Arizona Women’s swimming team on their journey to Northern California to face two top-5 opponents.
On Friday evening, The Cats were in Palo Alto to face the No. 4 Stanford Cardinal. The meet started off with a bang, as the University of Arizona 200 medley relay of Justine Schluntz, Annie Chandler, Ana Agy, and Leone Vorster outtouched the Cardinal relay by .01.
Arizona appeared to be in the pole position after winning 4 out of the first 5 races. Alyssa Anderson followed up the relay win by taking the 1000 free in 9:43.30. Kate Dwelley of Stanford scored the first win for the Cardinal in the 200 free, but Arizona sandwiched that by two more wins by Agy in the 100 back (53.79) and Chandler in the 100 breast (1:01.56). The Wildcats would not win another race on their way to a 173-125 defeat.
Stanford received double victories by Julia Smit (200 Back, 200 IM), Elaine Breeden (100, 200 fly), and Carmen Stellar (1m, 3m diving).
The Cardinal beat the Arizona St. Sundevils 184.5-111.5. In an otherwise unexciting meet, the Cardinal won 13 of 16 events, Julia Smit provided an exciting moment for the home crowd when she smashed an 18 year-old record in the 400 IM. The old record of 4:08.52, set by Olympic Gold Medalist Summer Sanders (also of Nickelodeon fame), was set in 1992. Smit went a 4:05.14, yet was still 5 seconds off of her own school record.
Arizona then traveled an hour around the bay on I-880 to meet No. 5 California in Berkeley on Saturday. It was dejavu all over again as the Wildcats started off hot, this time winning 4 out of the first 6 events. But just like Friday, Arizona went cold to end the meet as Cal won 9 of the last 10 events.
Golden Bear senior Lauren Boyle finished out her career at the Spieker Aquatics Complex with a bang. On senior night, Boyle took the wins in both the 500 and 1000 freestyles.
The final score of the meet was 165-134.
The no. 3 Arizona men, on the same trip, knocked off no. 2 Stanford and no. 4 California.