ST. Paul, Minn. (Blugolds.com) – The University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire men's and women's swim and dive teams jumped into nonconference matchups on Saturday as the men faced off with Saint John's University (Minn.) and the women swam in a triangular with St. Catherine's University (Minn.) and the College of St. Benedict (Minn.). Both Blugold squads came away with victories as the men defeated SJU 218-82 and the women defeated SCU and CSB, 189-105 and 234-65.
 
The afternoon pool party began with the Blugold divers sweeping the results in all four events. Ella Josephs (Fr. – Plymouth, Wis.) won the one-meter and three-meter competitions with scores of 196.85 and 197.60 respectively. Rachel Kachinsky (Sr. – New Lenox, Ill./Lincoln-Way Central) took second in the three-meter with a score of 195.60, and Jordan Kuhn (So. – Waukesha, Wis./Waukesha West) took second on the one-meter board with a 196.35. Blake Wallen (Fr. – Savage, Minn.) dominated the men's side with first place finish in the one-meter (267.05) and a first-place finish in the three-meter (272.10). Ben Koller placed second on both boards with scores of 252.95 on the one-meter and 240.05 on the three-meter board.
 
The Blugold 400-yard Medley relay teams both took first place. The women's squad of Sydney McGuine (Sr. – Huntley, Ill.), Ella Weaver (Sr. – McFarland, Wis.), Elaina Plonis (Jr. – Macomb, Mich./Eisenhower), and Grace Schnabl (So. – New Berlin, Wis./Brookfield Central) finished with a 4:04.34. The men's relay team posted a 3:32.14 that included Sam Ryf (Gr. – Berlin, Wis.), Zhander Rowley (So. – Janesville, Wis./Parker), Ben Keller (Sr. – Cedarburg, Wis.), and Avery Lodahl (Jr. – Sun Prairie, Wis.). During the distance races, Elaine Proefrock (Jr. – Grafton, Wis.) and Kadin Denner (Jr. – Aurora, Colo.) placed first in their respective 1000-yard freestyle events as Proefock finished in 11:04.07 and Denner finished at 9:56.06.
 
Rafael Dacosta (Sr. – Blair, Wis./Blair-Taylor) placed first in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:47.06. Sam Ryf his second first place finish of the day in the 100-yard backstroke with a top time of 54.93. Ella Weaver took first in the women's 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:07.74. Ben Keller finished with a 1:56.48 and a top finish in the 200-yard butterfly. Sydney McGuine and Alex Jorgenson (Sr. – Winona, Minn.) both earned first place finishes in their 50-yard freestyle races. McGuine finished in 25.05 seconds and Jorgenson finished in 22.31 seconds.
 
After the competitions, head coach Annie Ryder was pleased with both teams' performances as they battle the length of the winter season. "Today the teams showed up and raced hard and dove really well. They had a tough week of practice, and many athletes are run down and tired. They swam and dove together as a team, fought hard, and brought a lot of energy against a trio of tough programs. Their willingness to do the work week in and week out is impressive and it's showing every time they race and dive."
 
Ryan Lahey (Jr. – Waunakee, Wis.) continued the UWEC dominance in the men's 200-yard backstroke with a top time of 2:02.08. Ella Weaver added to the success with a 2:28.75 time and a first-place finish in the women's 200-yard breaststroke. Kadin Denner won the men's 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 2:09.78. Molly Hosack (So. – Cedarburg, Wis.) and Ben Keller placed first in their 500-yard freestyle races with times of 5:21.25 and 4:44.54, respectively. Sam Ryf continued his stellar day with a first-place finish in the 100-yard butterfly.
Emma Vogen (Fr. – Apple Valley, Minn./Eastview) and Kadin Denner placed first in their 400-yard IM races with times of 4:57.01 and 4:13.33. To wrap up the afternoon, the Blugold 400-yard freestyle squads earned first place finishes as the men's squad of Rafael Dacosta, Jack Gunderson, Evan Bushko, and Avery Lodahl finished at 3:12.55 and the women's relay of Sydney McGuine, Sydney McCollor (Sr. – Saint Paul, Minn./Irondale), Zoe Rylander (Sr. – Roseville, Minn./Mounds View), and Grace Schnabl (So. – New Berlin, Wis./Brookfield Central) finished with a 3:43.18.
 
The Blugold teams will dive back into their second straight nonconference matchups on Friday, November 17^th when they travel to St. Cloud, Minn. to swim and dive against St. Cloud State (Minn.). First events are scheduled for 5 p.m. at the Halenbeck Hall Aquatic Center.