Boise State maintained an extremely narrow lead over the SDSU Aztecs on the second night of finals at the Mountain West Swimming & Diving Championships, with multiple NCAA cuts and meet records falling in the process.
San Diego State started off the meet strong with a first-place finish and NCAA A cut in the 200 Free Relay (1:28.72) ahead of Boise State’s A team (1:30.32). Just two tenths back was UNLV’s A team for third in 1:30.46.
Nevada diver Krysta Palmer was just off the Mountain West record in the 3-meter diving event, scoring 359.40 points for first place. Colorado State’s Ariana Milone (338.10) and Boise State’s Erin Kohlbeck (337.40) followed up with scores for second and third, respectively.
Air Force came away with a 1-2 finish in the 500 Free to stack up the points, with teammates Genevieve Miller (4:42.47) and Sarah Menke (4:46.54) taking the top two spots. Both girls’ times qualified as NCAA B cuts, and Miller‘s winning time broke the Mountain West all time record from 2008. Following up for third in another NCAA B cut was Nevada’s Henny Eriksen in 4:47.55.
Nevada picked up the momentum in the 200 IM, taking points for first, third and fifth place in the A final. Junior Yawen Li took the top spot in an NCAA B cut of 1:57.59 ahead of Boise State’s Samantha Wicks (1:58.06). Wicks dropped the Boise State record in both prelims and finals. Following up for third was Nevada’s Teresa Baerens in 1:59.16. The top six swimmers in the event all earned NCAA B cuts.
The Aztecs took a 1-2 sweep in the 50 Free from Anika Apostalon‘s NCAA A cut-worthy swim (21.82) and Chelsea Bailey‘s NCAA B cut of 22.47. UNLV’s Julia Fehervari took third in 22.68. SDSU teammate Taylor Johnson picked up more points for SDSU with her fourth-place finish in 22.81.
The current point standings through the 50 Free are as follows:
1. Boise State – 275 points
2. SDSU – 268 points
3. Nevada – 216 points
4. UNLV – 140 points
5. Wyoming – 122.50 points
6. Air Force – 116 points
7. Colorado State – 94 points
8. Fresno State – 90.50 points
9. San Jose State – 83 points
10. New Mexico – 68 points
Click here for full session results.