Denver vs Colorado State (Women)
- November 1, 2024
- Denver, Colo.
- SCY (25 yards)
- Results
Courtesy: Denver Athletics
DENVER – The University of Denver women’s swimming and diving program improved to 2-1 in its 2024-25 dual campaign with a victory over in-state rival Colorado State on Friday afternoon at El Pomar Natatorium.
Women’s Team Scoring
Denver 161
Colorado State 139
Friday Event Wins
Women’s 400 Medley Relay – Lilly Zippel, Jessica Maeda, Ali Beay, Izzy Burton – 3:46.46
Women’s 200 Free – Ines Marin – 1:50.38
Women’s 100 Breast – Jessica Maeda – 1:02.68
Women’s 200 Fly – Sabrina Rachjaibun – 2:04.45
Women’s 3-Meter Dive – Kaitlin Calvery – 268.25
Women’s 200 Breast – Jessica Maeda – 2:17.72
Women’s 100 Fly – Mia Moulden – 56.96
Women’s 1-Meter Dive – Kaitlin Calvery – 272.75
Friday NCAA Standards
Women’s 1-Meter Dive – Kaitlin Calvery – 272.75
Event-by-Event Recap
Friday’s meet opened with diving. Kaitlin Calvery swept both boards for the second meet in a row, earning a 268.25 (3-meter) and a 272.75 (1-meter). The one-meter score gave her an NCAA cut on the event for the second-straight appearance. Denver’s divers combined for a sweep of the podium on the one-meter board. Savanna Berry took second with a 257.75 and Kaelyn Hinesley scored third with a 233.50.
Denver opened the swimming portion of the meet with a win in the 400 medley relay. Lilly Zippel, Jessica Maeda, Ali Beay and Izzy Burton combined for a 3:46.46 to take the relay victory.
In the first distance swim of the afternoon, the Pioneers took spots 2-6. Paige Reilly led the pack with a 10:33.97. Daniela Alfaro rounded out the podium places, being timed third in 10:35.17.
The Pios got back in the win column in the 200 free when Ines Marin reached the wall first in a time of 1:50.38. Kali Metuzals finished third in 1:53.31.
Beay took second in the women’s 100 back with a time of 56.31 to score points for the Pios in the event.
Maeda earned Denver another win an event later with her time of 1:02.68 in the women’s 100 breast.
Sabrina Rachjaibun and Mia Moulden combined for a 1-2 finish in the women’s 200 fly with times of 2:04.45 and 2:05.28, respectively, to distance the Pios from the Rams.
Following the break, Marin took second in the 100 free with a time of 52.27. In the women’s 200 back, the Pios took spots 2-4, including podium appearances for Zippel (2:04.06) and Darian Koler (2:07.46).
Maeda and Peyton Mullowney combined for Denver’s second 1-2 of the afternoon, taking the top two spots in the 200 breast. Maeda reached the wall first in 2:17.72 and Mullowney clocked in at 2:21.18.
Rachjaibun grabbed second in the 500 free with a 5:03.36 to close out Friday’s distance swimming events.
Moulden and Beay finished 1-3 in the 100 fly ahead of the final break of the day. The winning time of 56.96 went to Moulden, while Beay reached the wall in 57.02.
Maeda completed her busy day with a second-place finish in the 200 fly, clocking in at 2:05.90.
UP NEXT:
Denver’s men’s program is in action Saturday against Colorado Mesa inside El Pomar Natatorium. Diving is set to begin at 12 p.m. MT, while the first swimming event is set for 2 p.m. MT. Following that meet, both programs will have just over a month off before resuming their seasons at the 2024 Minnesota Invite from December 4-7.
Courtesy: CSU Athletics
DENVER – For Lexie Trietley, there is a flow to every dual because she rarely steps out of her routine. She swims at the top, at the bottom and the two races in the middle. It’s like clockwork for her.
The beginning of the 2024-25 season for the Colorado State women’s swimming and diving team, however, has felt very out of routine for the Rams. They have dropped their first two duals of the season, with Friday’s 161-139 loss to Denver to open a back-to-back weekend equaling the amount of losses this season (two) to what they’ve had the past three combined.
Teams are coming after them, and coach Christopher Woodard thinks his squad is starting to understand it’s going to take a bit extra, which includes Saturday, when his squad hosts the top-ranked team in Division II, Colorado Mesa, at Moby Pool (12. p.m.)
“We’ve just impressed upon them that, for whatever reason, the success we’ve had or who we are, there’s a target on our back,” Woodard said. “Some of these (Denver) girls here swam their season bests. I think it’s impressing upon the girls, and we did that in our meeting, pressure is a privilege and it’s something we’re trying to work through. I think we have moments where we fell in those pressure situations and that’s something we have to figure out.”
The Rams won half of the 16 events on the day, with Trietley and Tess Whineray winning their normal two. For Trietley, that’s the middle two races of the day, the 50- and 100-yard freestyles for the sprint specialist. She begins her day with whichever relay starts the meet, then ends with the closing relay. Friday, it was a runner-up finish for the 400 medley team at the start, a win for the 200 free team at the end.
The only part which might differ is the length of the break between her two individual swims, the one with the Pioneers a bit shorter than she’d like.
“I like it. I think it’s a good spread for me,” she said. “I think it gives me a decent amount of time between my relays and individuals to get set, because I have different mindsets for both. Today the 50 and 100 were a little close together, so I prefer to have diving. It’s nice to have three out of the four events done before most of the meet is over. I like to be able to cheer and not stress about if I’m tiring myself for an individual.
“I’m very prepared for my races at every single meet and I think it gives me a sense of confidence and comfortability that my races are the same every meet. I don’t even look at the lineup.”
But she is having to look over her shoulder a bit, and she’s happy with what she’s seeing. Teammate Azalea Shepherd, who had to undergo heart surgery at the end of her freshman season, is now starting to post some impressive times in those same two events, even a third.
Shepherd took second in the 50 free, third in the 100, wrapping up her individual slate with a runner-up finish in the 100 butterfly.
“It’s awesome. I think we can be 1-2 at almost every single meet,” Trietley said. “I really think she’s taking Megan (Hager’s) role from last year and I’m really happy for her and her 100 fly. She’s doing awesome and she’s doing all the right things.
Nobody is happier than Shepherd, who’s been waiting patiently for her form to return. She was back in the water at the end of last season, but still gaining back her lungs. She returned this season ready to go and has progressively been dropping time. Against Denver, she posted personal bests in both the 50 free and 100 fly.
Each step forward is celebrated.
“It’s so important, because the process gets you to your goals at the end of the day. It’s about what happens in the process, how you’re racing at every meet or practice,” Shepherd said. “I’ve been working a lot on positive self-talk too before my races. I feel like I’ve been really hard on myself the last two years.
“I feel like I’m surprising myself every time I race. I came into this season wanting to have a lot more fun and not putting so much pressure on myself to the point where I get into my head too much. I feel like I’ve done that a lot in the past, especially before I found out what happened with my heart. Having a lot more fun and taking it one race at a time. I just give it my all and have fun with it.”
Also a sprinter, she’s really enjoying branching out with the butterfly. It was a race Woodard felt she could succeed in during the recruiting process, and at the start of the season, she asked to take a stab now that she’s gaining strength and confidence.
Woodard is more than happy to give her the shot, especially the way she’s performing.
“I’m always impressed from the simple fact she had open-heart surgery and she’s on the deck 14 months later and cranking out some personal bests. It blows my mind,” he said. “It’s a testament to her discipline and her passion for the sport. I’m also impressed – just getting back in the pool is an accomplishment in itself – because if you want to go really fast, you have to pay attention to details. I think she’s starting to hammer away at some of her weaknesses and turn them into strengths.”
Those results make her a factor on relays, particularly the two shorter freestyle races and quite possibly elsewhere if her butterfly continues to take off.
While Shepherd has a bit more on her plate individually at a dual, the idea of having Treitley to train with is a shot in the arm, giving her a challenge to meet on a daily basis.
“Lexie is a serious competitor, and I always try to race her in practice whenever we can,” Shepherd said. “I always see her in the pool during races, I see where she’s at and it makes me want to go even faster and get those points for the team.”
Whineray took both the 100 and 200 backstrokes, as has been the routine for the sophomore, with Maya White pacing the 1,000 freestyle field, Erin Dawson following suit in the 500 free. Maisy Barbosa won the 200 IM, the final individual race of the day, giving Woodard and the team a positive exit from a subpar day.
The Rams won the final two races after knowing they couldn’t win the dual. Now he wants to see the same fight earlier and more often. When a team is winning half of the events it then becomes a matter of the depth points, and the Rams aren’t collecting them.
Taking him back to the process of performing under pressure.
“It’s a process I’d like to speed up for sure,” Woodard said. “But I’m proud, especially toward the end when they knew they couldn’t’ win and came back and won the last two events. That’s a 12-point victory. That’s a tight margin.”
