Oakland vs Youngstown State
Courtesy: Oakland Athletics
YOUNGSTOWN, Ohio – The Oakland University men’s and women’s swimming and diving program took home its first victories of the year over Youngstown State during a two-day duel meet at Beeghly Natatorium.
DAY ONE
Oakland quickly took charge on Friday, showcasing several impressive individual and relay performances. The diving events began with Hannah Clark leading the Golden Grizzlies, securing a second-place finish in the women’s three-meter dive. Owen Cox and Liam James placed third and fifth in the men’s one-meter competition.
The women kicked off the swimming events with a victory in the 200 medley relay. The team of Lydia Soldatke, Maya Dobry, Ava McNamara, and Kendra Venter finished with a winning time of 1:44.28. The men’s top relay squad of Harry Nicholson, Christopher Palvadre, Micah Scheffer, and Charles Brown just missed first by less than a second, finishing runner-up.
Karel Subagyo clinched the top spot in the 1650 freestyle (15:47.55), edging YSU’s top swimmer by just eight-hundredths of a second. On the women’s side, Megan Donnelly and Kelley Hassett finished second and fourth in the same event.
The Golden Grizzlies continued their momentum in the backstroke and sprint events, with Soldatke winning the 100 back (54.94) and 200 back (1:59.64), while Nicholson swept the men’s 100 back (49.07) and contributed key relay splits. Scheffer dominated the 50 free with a time of 20.42, followed closely by Charlie Brown and Caleb Rohacs.
Chris Palvadre, the reigning breaststroke Horizon League champion, swept both distances on the men’s side, winning the 100 (53.79) and 200 (1:58.88). Charisse Hickman followed suit for the women, capturing the 200 breaststroke (2:17.96) and placing second in the 100 (1:04.56).
The women’s 400 freestyle relay concluded the evening with another victory. Grace Albrecht, Viviane Partridge, Kendra Venter, and Erika Pietras combined for a time of 3:26.78.
At the end of Day One, the Golden Grizzlies were up against the Penguins, with the men ahead 167-114 and the women up 150-130.
DAY TWO
Oakland returned to the pool Saturday morning, continuing to win multiple events across both teams and demonstrating impressive depth.
The Golden Grizzlies started strong with a sweep in the 400 medley relay. The women’s “A” team of Soldatke, Dobry, McNamara, and Pietras secured first place with a time of 3:49.37, while the men’s relay of Ezzat, Palvadre, Haney, and Nicholson claimed gold with a time of 3:14.86, finishing three seconds ahead of the competition.
In the individual medley events, Kelley Hassett and Charisse Hickman finished first and second in the women’s 400 IM, clocking times of 4:33.85 and 4:36.02. Cooper Dillman followed with a victory in the men’s race at 4:03.20, contributing to an Oakland sweep of the top four positions.
Subagyo continued his standout weekend by winning the 200 freestyle (1:37.93) and the 500 freestyle (4:29.81). Teammates Ike Martinez and Victor Teeters finished closely behind in the 500, taking second and third.
The Grizzlies flexed their sprint dominance once again, with Micah Scheffer and Charlie Brown leading a one-two finish in the 50 freestyle (20.61, 20.71). On the women’s side, Kendra Venter and Avery Beal mirrored this success by finishing first and second in the 50 free (23.70, 23.86) before Beal won the 100 free with a time of 52.21.
Ajjuub Ezzat added to Oakland’s victories by winning the 50 back (22.76), 100 back (49.24), and 100 IM (50.97). Palvadre completed another breaststroke sweep, winning both the 50 (25.08) and the 100 (55.10) for a second time.
The meet concluded with a thrilling finish as Oakland’s 200 freestyle relay teams both claimed victories. Scheffer, Nicholson, Palvadre, and Brown clocked 1:21.62, narrowly out-touching YSU by just seven-hundredths of a second. The women’s team of Albrecht, Soldatke, Pietras, and Beal took the win in 1:36.53, edging YSU by a tenth of a second.
The Oakland men triumphed with a score of 196-85, and the women claimed a 187-94 victory, completing a dominant two-day performance to open the 2025-26 season.
Complete results of the duel meet are available for both day one and day two.
UP NEXT: The Golden Grizzlies will host a tri-meet against Cincinnati and Purdue at the OU Aquatic Center on Oct. 31 and Nov. 1.
Courtesy: YSU Sports
Youngstown, Ohio – The Youngstown State men’s and women’s swimming and diving programs kicked off their 2025-26 campaigns inside the Beeghly Natatorium on Friday afternoon.
The divers began Friday’s festivities, and the Penguins started off with a bang as they swept victories in both the women’s three-meter dive and men’s one-meter dive events. Freshman Rafael Serey-Cormier set a new program record in his first collegiate competition as he won the men’s one-meter dive with a score of 305.70. Zachary Lao placed second with a score of 275.93. Hanna Held won the women’s three-meter dive with a score of 266.40.
The Penguins men started hot with the first swimming event of the day, as the 200-medley relay crew of Quinn Cynor, Adrian Andres-Moreno, Jacob Gramer, and Noah Smith placed first with a time of 1:28.39, just edging out Oakland’s fastest relay team by four-tenths of a second. YSU’s fastest female 200-medley relay squad of Lara Lilic, Hannah Murray, Ximena Young, and Chloe Moore, all newcomers, finished runner-up with a time of 1:46.97.
Derin Donmez firmly began her Penguins career with a victory in the 1650 free with a time of 17:08.97, just under five seconds quicker than the second-place finisher. Olivia Sweetman placed third in the event with a time of 17:20.73. Poyraz San Askin placed second in the men’s 1650 free with a time of 15:47.63.
YSU swept victories in the 200 free, including another new record being set. Quinn Cynor rewrote the men’s record book with a time of 1:36.48 on his way to a victory. Olivia Sweetman placed first in the women’s race with a time of 1:52.34, beating the second-place finisher from Oakland by just under two-tenths of a second.
The Penguins also swept victories in the 200 butterfly events as well. YSU went one-two in the women’s race, as Orla Maccines secured her first individual event victory as a Penguin with a time of 2:04.55, while Allison Ramirez Romero finished runner-up with a time of 2:08.08. Valer Kennedy won his first collegiate race for the men as he clocked a time of 1:48.90.
Maccines also won the 100 butterfly for the women, finishing in 56.21, while her teammate Allison Ramirez Romero placed third with a time of 57.51. Valer Kennedy placed third in the men’s 100 butterfly with a time of 49.33.
Hannah Murray won her first individual race as a Penguin in the 100 breaststroke, clocking a time of 1:03.89. James Slessor placed second in the men’s 100 breaststroke event, finishing with a time of 55.50.
Murray would also go on to win the women’s 200 IM with a time of 2:04.75.
Chloe Moore won the women’s 50 free with a time of 24.03, while the YSU men placed second and third in their event, with Jacob Gramer placing second with a time of 20.58 and Reid Withey placing third with a time of 20.88.
The Penguins had strong showings in both the men’s and women’s 500 free events. Olivia Sweetman won the women’s section with a time of 5:01.41 while her teammate Derin Donmez placed third, clocking a time of 5:03.26. Poyraz San Askin led the Penguins men with a runner-up finish, clocking a time of 4:40.01, while Seif Elbatal placed third with a time of 4:41.17.
Chloe Moore placed second for the Penguins women in the 100 free as she clocked a time of 52.21, while Quinn Cynor also finished runner-up for the men in the 100 free, swimming a time of 44.74.
In the 200 breaststroke events, Hannah Murray finished runner-up for the YSU women with a time of 2:19.36, while Dominic Panozzo finished third for the YSU men with a time of 2:04.95.
Both the Penguins men and women corralled third-place finishes in the 100 backstroke events, as Lara Lilic placed third for the women with a time of 59.12, and Elliot Elmore clocked a time of 49.44 in the men’s race, also placing third.
To wrap up the night, the Penguins male 400-free relay squad of Quinn Cynor, Noah Smith, Lorenz Beck, and Jacob Gramer won with a time of 2:59.80, just two-hundredths of a second faster than Oakland’s second-place squad, while on the women’s side, the crew of Olivia Sweetman, Chloe Moore, Orla Maccines, and Ximena Young finished third with a time of 3:30.27.
Overall, Oakland’s women defeated YSU by a score of 150-130, and the Oakland men defeated the Penguins’ men by a score of 167-114.
Both schools will battle again tomorrow at 10 a.m. inside Beeghly Natatorium.
Youngstown, Ohio – The Youngstown State men’s and women’s swimming and diving programs wrapped up their season-opening dual vs. fellow Horizon League member Oakland on Saturday morning inside the Beeghly Natatorium.
The morning kicked off the same way as yesterday, with the Penguins men and women sweeping victories in the diving events. Hanna Held captured her second-consecutive diving victory for the women, winning the one-meter dive with a score of 275.93. Haley Conklin placed third, scoring 236.33. Rafael Serey-Cormier also racked up his second-straight diving victory, winning the men’s three-meter dive with a score of 304.20.
To begin the swimming events, the men’s and women’s top 400-medley relay teams each placed second, respectively. The women’s team of Lara Lilic, Hannah Murray, Orla Maccines, and Chloe Moore swam a time of 3:52.26, while the men’s team of Quinn Cynor, James Slessor, Jacob Gramer, and Noah Smith clocked a time of 3:17.52.
YSU swept victories in the 100 butterfly, as Quinn Cynor won the men’s race with a time of 48.26, and Orla Maccines won the women’s section with a time of 56.32.
Olivia Sweetman secured a first-place finish in the 200 free, clocking a time of 1:52.04.
She also won the 500 free with a time of 5:00.39, while Derin Donmez finished third with a time of 5:06.86.
The YSU men secured the top two spots in the 50 butterfly, as Quinn Cynor won the event with a time of 21.67, followed by Jacob Gramer, who was the runner-up with a time of 21.86. Orla Maccines finished runner-up for the women, clocking a time of 25.80.
Sweetman also led the Penguins women in the 100 free, as she finished runner-up with a time of 52.62, while Chloe Moore finished third with a time of 52.72. Lorenz Beck led YSU in the men’s 100 free with a time of 45.86.
In the 100 breaststroke events, Hannah Murray led the Penguins women with a runner-up finish, swimming a time of 1:05.10, while the Penguins men were led by James Slessor, who finished second (55.39) and Dominic Panozzo, who finished third (57.21).
The Penguins women finished two-three in the 50 breaststroke, as Hannah Murray finished runner-up with a time of 30.15, while Helen Bernardi placed third with a time of 30.23. James Slessor led YSU in the men’s event, finishing second with a time of 25.26.
Reid Withey led the Penguins men with a third-place finish in the 50 backstroke, swimming a time of 23.57.
Jacob Gramer swam to a third-place finish in the 50 free, clocking a time of 20.77.
Derin Donmez placed third in the 400 IM, clocking a time of 4:36.14.
The men’s and women’s top relay teams capped off the weekend with runner-up finishes in their respective 200-free relay events. The men’s team of Quinn Cynor, Noah Smith, Lorenz Beck, and Jacob Gramer swam a time of 1:21.69, just seven-hundredths of a second slower than Oakland’s first-place team, while the women’s squad of Orla Maccines, Jordan Sarubbi, Hannah Murray, and Chloe Moore swam a time of 1:36.66, just over one-tenth of a second slower than the first-place time.
Oakland’s men won by a score of 196-85, while the Oakland women won by a score of 187-94.
The Penguins will be back in action next week when they make the short trip to Akron for the Akron Zips Classic on Oct. 10-11.
