2026 DOUBLE UP MEET
- January 10, 2026
- Houston, Texas
- SCY (25 yards)
- Results
Courtesy: Rice Athletics
Houston – Rice closed out the home portion of its 2025-26 schedule in dominate fashion, sweeping every event in an unscored meet against St. Thomas on Saturday at the Rice Competition Pool.
The Owls controlled the meet from start to finish, with Ava Portello, Ava Hamblett and Reese Cole each claiming three individual wins. Siiri Einio, Avery Karacz and Lily Archibald added two victories apiece, while Zara Bolton and Bella Zhang also recorded event wins.
Einio opened the meet with a first-place finish in the 50-yard breaststroke, touching the wall in 29.56. Hamblett followed by winning the 50 backstroke in 26.19, and Bolton captured the 50 butterfly with a time of 25.40.
Cole secured her first victory of the day in the 100 individual medley (59.39), while Karacz won the 50 freestyle in 24.31. Portello earned her first win in the 500 freestyle, posting a time of 4:55.89, before Einio added another top finish in the 100 breaststroke (1:04.43).
Hamblett collected her second win in the 100 backstroke with a time of 56.91. Archibald won the 100 butterfly in 56.04, and Cole followed with a first-place finish in the 200 IM (2:07.51).
Karacz topped the field in the 100 freestyle (52.80), while Portello added a win in the 1,000 freestyle with a time of 10:12.56. Zhang earned first place in the 200 breaststroke (2:21.32), and Hamblett completed her trio of victories by winning the 200 backstroke in 2:02.52.
Archibald won the 200 butterfly (2:06.76), Cole closed her day by taking first in the 400 IM (4:32.81), and Portello capped the meet with a victory in the 200 freestyle, finishing in 1:52.32.
The Owls will face the University of Houston on Jan. 31 at 11 a.m. in the CRWC Natatorium.
Courtesy: UST Athletics
Houston, TX- The University of St. Thomas swimming team stayed local in Houston, facing Rice University at the Gibbs Recreation and Wellness Center. After nearly a month away from the competitive atmosphere, the Celts returned to the pool with confidence and energy, pushing through the meet with strong support from both teammates and coaches.
On the men’s side, Tanner McKay delivered an impressive day in the breaststroke events. McKay claimed first place in both the 50-yard Breaststroke and the 100-yard Breaststroke. He capped off his performance with a second-place finish in the 200-yard Breaststroke. Benjamin Tercero dominated the backstroke events, sweeping all three races. Tercero took first in the 50-yard Backstroke, followed by wins in the 100-yard Backstroke and the 200-yard Backstroke. Oliver Spencer continued the strong showing for the Celts with a clean sweep of the freestyle events. Spencer earned first place in the 50-yard Freestyle, followed by victories in the 100-yard freestyle and the 200-yard freestyle, showcasing both speed and endurance.
On the women’s side, Kelsy Elgar raced across the freestyle events, finishing fourth in both the 50-yard Freestyle and 100-yard Freestyle, and ninth in the 200-yard Freestyle. Ava Verret turned in solid breaststroke performances throughout the meet, placing sixth in the 50-yard Breaststroke, fifth in the 100-yard Breaststroke, and fourth in the 200-yard Breaststroke.
Overall, the Celts showed resilience and depth in their return to competition, using the home meet against Rice as an important step in regaining race rhythm and building momentum for the remainder of the season.
Up Next:
The Celts will continue their season as they prepare for the next upcoming competition, taking on both Centenary and Austin College as they travel to Shreveport, Louisiana. The meet will take place Saturday, January 17th.
