UNI opened their 2023-2024 swim and dive season as they traveled to Iowa City to take on the University of Iowa in a dual meet this past weekend. The Panthers put up a tough battle against the Hawkeyes but ultimately ended up losing 196.5-103.5.
Faith Larsen, the MVC’s leading 50-yard freestyle champion won her first race of the weekend as she defeated Kennedy Gilbertson of Iowa by 0.51 seconds in the 50-yard freestyle race. Larsen won her race with a time of 23.37 seconds. Larsen also notched another win under her belt in the dual as a part of the 200-yard freestyle relay team alongside Clare Christensen, Abby Lear and Morgan Meyer. The team won their race with a time of 1:34.64. Meyer helped the team further as she finished in second place in the 100-yard freestyle race while Larsen took second.
The runner-up for the MVC’s 200-yard backstroke race, Amber Finke, was in action this weekend as well. She competed in the 200-yard backstroke yet again, clocking a 2:00.82 which gave her the victory in the race. She also placed second in the 100-yard backstroke as well as the 200-yard individual medley.
The 200-yard medley relay team consisting of Larsen, Finke, Sydney Aird and Scout Bergwall took second place with a time of 1:45.07. Aird placed second in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:06.45. Freshman Jenna Breitbach placed behind her in fourth with a time of 1:07.94 in her first ever college competition. Aird and Breitbach also placed second and fourth respectively in the 200-yard backstroke race. Hannah Nedder placed second in the 100-yard butterfly race with Bergwall finishing in third. Nedder also placed fourth in the 200-yard butterfly race with a time of 2:12.08.
The diving team fared well in their competitions as well. Trista Thompson placed the best for the Panthers in the one-meter board with a 245.65 score. Erica Peters tied for fifth in the same event with a 219.10. The three-meter competition saw Hannah Taylor get her career-best score of 230.90 to get third place for the Panthers. Maddie Moran and Avery Hogan placed fifth and sixth in the three-meter competition, respectively.
The Panthers will return to action as they travel to Vermillion, SD on Nov. 3-4 for the Coyote Extravaganza on the campus of the University of South Dakota.
