Washington State vs Oregon State
- Friday, February 1st
- Corvallis, Oregon
- Short Course Yards
- Results
TEAM SCORES
- Washington State – 148
- Oregon State – 114
Washington State swam past Pac-12 rival Oregon State for the 7th year in a row on Friday, February 1st. The Cougars won 10 events to the Beavers’ 6. Oregon State got out to a great start, finishing 1-2 in the 200 medley relay. The A relay of Felicia Anderson (25.91), Fernanda Rodriguez (29.66), Arianna Letrari (25.55), and Kitty Schneider (23.87) came together for a final time of 1:44.99, while the B relay came in at 1:45.47.
Ryan Falk took the 1000 free and 500 free. Falk swam a 10:27.00 in the 1000 to outpace teammate Samantha Howell, who swam a 10:29.14. Falk then won a tight race in the 500, posting a 5:03.23. Oregon State’s Lauren Yon swam a 5:04.78 to come in 2nd. Keiana Fountaine continued to have a standout freshman season, taking the 200 free and 100 free. Fountaine swam a 1:51.74 in the 200, taking the event by almost 2 seconds over Schneider. She then went on to win a very tight race in the 100 free, using a 26.27 back half to run down Schneider, tocuhing 52.26 to Schneider’s 52.42.
Mackenzie Duarte took the breast events, leading a 1-2-3 punch for WSU in the 100 breast. Duarte swam a 1:04.19, while Elsa Linberg clocked a 1:05.57, and Lauren Burckel came in at 1:05.69. Duarte then posted a 2:17.26 to win the 200 breast, while Burckel came in 2nd with a 2:19.86. Duarte also took home a win in the 200 IM, swimming a 2:06.19 to beat out teammate Taylor McCoy (2:06.40), who was the winner of the 200 back (2:03.01).
Arianna Letrari was a dual event winner for Oregon State, taking the fly events. In the 100 fly, Letrari swam a 56.37 to beat WSU’s Sophia Balmaceda (57.00). Letrari then took the 200 fly with a 2:05.09, winning by 2 seconds.
PRESS RELEASE – WASHINGTON STATE:
CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Washington State swim team pushed its winning streak over Oregon State to seven after a 148-114 victory in Corvallis, Ore. Friday. The Cougars are now 36-19 over the Beavers after winning 10 events.
“Oregon State brought out a lot of stops, and our team responded well,” said head coach Matt Leach. “I knew it was going to be a back-and-forth meet, and we were lucky enough to have some really good swims across the board. It was a lot of fun to see our attitude be positive, our efforts be great, and I am really excited. The outcome was what we were hoping for, but there were certain events where we got up and raced.”
Sophomore Mackenzie Duarte had an outstanding performance for the Cougars, taking home three individual wins. Duarte led the way for the Cougars in the 100 breast, clocking a 1:04.19. Teammates Linnea Lindberg and Lauren Burckel took second and third, respectively, in the event. The Walnut Creek, Calif. native also took first in the 200 IM, finishing just ahead of fellow sophomore Taylor McCoy. In the 200 breast, Duarte placed first while freshman Lauren Burckel took second.
Junior Ryan Falk and freshman Keiana Fountaine each completed the meet with two individual wins. Falk continued her success in the distance freestyles, winning both the 1000 and 500 free. The Oregon native posted a 10:27.00 in the 1000 free to secure first place, just ahead of teammate Samantha Howell who clocked a season-best 10:29.14. Falk, a Portland, Ore. native, also dominated in the 500 free, clocking a 5:03.23. Fountaine won her 11th and 12th individual events of the season, taking first in the 200 and 100 free. The Tracy, Calif. native swam anchor of the first place 400 free relay team. Alongside teammates Chloe Larson, Sophia Balmaceda, and Emily Barrier, the team clocked a 3:28.15.
In the 50 free, the Cougars took the top-four spots – with sophomore Chloe Larson leading the way. The Rapid City, S.D. native clocked a 24.04 in the event, marking her first individual win of the season. Fountaine, Paige Gardner, and Barrier took second, third, and fourth, respectively.
Sophomore Taylor McCoy won her 14th individual event of the season, clocking a 2:03.01 in the 200 back. The Pullman, Wash. native also placed fourth in the 100 back.
“The team continues to push and continues to have a team effort all around,” added Leach. “There were so many great races, and great races where we went one-two-three – which is a great improvement for us. We are continuing to try to get better, and are in a phase in our training where we are working on a lot of speed. All-and-all, it was a great victory for the Cougs, we are very excited as we continue this process moving forward. Can’t wait to see what the team does against Utah in our final home meet. Go Cougs!”
The Cougars will be back in action Feb. 16 as they welcome Utah to Gibb Pool. The team will recognize senior Linnea Lindberg.
PRESS RELEASE – OREGON STATE:
CORVALLIS, Ore. – The Beavers fell in their duel meet against Washington State by a final score of 148-114.
Oregon State started out the meet hot with their A (Felicia Anderson, Fernanda Rodriguez, Arianna Letrari, and Kristina Schneider) and B (Lindsay Swail, Cali Rowland, Jacquie Price, and Amanda Hoejberg) relay teams taking first and second in the 200 Medley Relay to start out the meet. Three events later Swail, F Anderson, and Brooke Hofmann finished 1-2-3 in the 100 back.
“We needed to show up as a team, and I think we did a good job of that.” Beaver head coach Jennifer Buffinsaid. “When we show up and are focused on each other and the team we perform better as a whole. We put together our plan and I think everybody executed that plan.”
Kristina Schneider and Cali Rowland set the pace for the Beavers on the evening with each of them freshmen setting a pair of season high times. Schneider finished with a final time of 1:53.43 in the 200 free and 52.42 in the 100 free while Rowland finished with times of 1:05.79 and 2:12.77 in the 100 breast and 200 IM respectively.
“I’m pretty stoked about my times, but I think I’m more proud of how the team competed,” Rowland said. “We’ve been training really hard all week for both of these meets, and we came out and swam hard with not a lot of rest.”
“Kristina (Schneider) has been working a lot all year,” Buffin said. “Compound being in a foreign country with the experience of being a freshman in college and I think Kristina is handling all of the things that are thrown her way very well. She’s still got some work, but overall I think she came out and competed with a couple of really talented sprinters.”
Arianna Letrari finished with a trio of heat wins, finishing in first in the 100 and 200 fly individually as well as being a part of the first place 200 medley relay team.
“I’m really excited about my races, and really I’m proud of the whole team,” Letrari said. “Everyone was swimming well. We obviously wanted to win today but we will learn off of it.”
The Beavers have a short turn around and will be back in the pool tomorrow for a dual meet with the University of Idaho. The meet is set for 10 A.M. at Osborn Aquatic Center.
“We’ve talked about (the double) all week and have been preparing to handle it better than the last time we faced the same situation,” Buffin said. “At UCLA I think we came out as individuals and not focused on being a team. Tomorrow I really want us to bring the energy and compete for the entire meet.”
For more information on the Oregon State swimming team, visit OSUBeavers.com or follow the club @BeaverSwim on Twitter.