Pool Records Fall by the Handful as Denver and Wyoming Split at Altitude

Wyoming vs. Denver

• January 10th, 2020
• Corbett Pool, Laramie, Wyoming
• SCY (25y) course
• Complete Results
• Final Scores:
  • Men: Denver 165-Wyoming 135
  • Women: Wyoming 156-Denver 144

Two of the top mid-major teams of the Western U.S. battled on Friday with the Denver men and Wyoming women coming out on top. With Laramie, Wyoming sitting at over 7,000 feet, results are as clocked above, but will go into the NCAA times database with altitude adjustments.

In the men’s meet, Denver junior Cameron Auchinachie won all 4 races that he swam, including botht he 100 back (48.80) and 100 free (44.68) individually. Auchinachie also led off the Pioneers’ winning 200 medley relay with a 22.32 split and posted a 43.69 on a rolling start on the winning 400 free relay on Saturday.

The 100 back is a new focus for Auchinachie this season. Last year, the 200 free was his 3rd event in addition to the sprint freestyles, and he didn’t swim the 100 back a single time in collegiate competition. This year, he’s only raced the 200 free once, and has more frequently raced his 100 back as an alternate individual event to the sprint frees. His 100 backstroke time on Friday broke the old Pool Record of 49.14 that was set by Wyoming’s Marshal Dilworth in 2012, while his 100 free time broke the old Pool Record of 44.91 that was set in 2013 by Wyoming’s Adam Kalms.

He didn’t swim any 50 freestyles at this meet, though he ranks 4th nationally in that event this season with a 19.13 that he swam mid-season. That time has already secured his NCAA Championship invitation.

In total, Denver won 10 of the 16 men’s events on offer. That included the only NCAA standard of the night when Sid Farber took the men’s 50 free in 19.87 – winning by almost a second. That’s another new Pool Record for Denver, breaking the 20.17 done by BYU sprinter Brett Allen in 2006. Farber has been 19.18 this season and ranks 6th nationally.

The Denver men also crushed the Pool Record in the 400 free relay, swimming a 2:59.89 that broke the old record of 3:02.59 done by BYU in 1984 – more than 35-years ago. Denver did not get the Pool Record in the 200 medley relay, however.

Among the wins for Wyoming was junior Brayden Love, who topped the men’s 100 fly in 48.24. That’s not a season-best for him, but it is about 2 seconds faster than he swam in January last season. The time also breaks the old Pool Record of 48.75 that was done by George Eglesfield of Wyoming in 2015.

The women’s meet swayed the way of Wyoming by 12 points thanks to a gutsy final relay performance. The two teams touched only .06 seconds apart in the 400 free relay, with Wyoming anchor Lainee Jones splitting 51.42 (9-tenths faster than she was in the individual 100 free) to get her relay to the wall first in 3:28.14. Under pressure, the Denver women’s 400 free relay was disqualified for an early exchange. While that DQ by itself didn’t fully explain the 12-point gap, if Denver had won that relay, they would have won the meet.

Besides her clutch late-meet swim and 2nd-place finish in the 100 free, Jones also won the 200 free in 1:52.70.

Denver’s Charlotte Simon was dominant in the women’s breaststroke races. First she won the 100 breaststroke in 1:04.38, clearing the field by a second-and-a-half, and later won the 200 breaststroke in 2:19.06, clearing the field by more than 5 seconds. That 200 breaststroke swim broke a Pool Record, improving the old time of 2:19.13 done by Wyoming’s 2:19.13 in 2014.

Denver is back in action next Friday on the road against BYU followed by a trip to Salt Lake City to swim Utah. Wyoming’s next meet is on Thursday against Cal Baptist.

Press Releases

Courtesy Denver Athletics:

LARAMIE, Wyo. – The University of Denver men’s swimming and diving program got back in the win column with a 165-135 win over Wyoming on Friday evening at Laramie High School. Denver’s women fell by a 12-point margin in Friday’s dual.

Denver opened the meet with a sweep of the 200 medley relays. On the women’s side, freshman Sofia Nosack (Beaverton, Ore.), junior Charlotte Simon (Saint Remy, France), senior Kylie Cronin (Marblehead, Mass.) and senior Josie Valette (Boulder, Colo.) combined for a time of 1:44.92, while junior Cameron Auchinachie (Binghamton, N.Y.), junior Cy Jager (Moscow, Idaho), redshirt-senior Graham Walker (Nairobi, Kenya) and redshirt-junior Sid Farber (Portland, Ore.) earned a 1:29.34 for the men.

Senior Andi Johnston (Fort Collins, Colo.) led the Pioneers in the women’s 1000 free to open up the individual races on Friday evening, taking second with a 10:38.85.

Denver’s men took three of the top four spots in the distance race led by 1-2 finishes from senior Colin Gilbert (Kamloops, B.C.) and classmate Jesse Haraden (Ballston Spa, N.Y.), who finished with times of 9:38.21 and 9:51.10, respectively.

The Pioneers took spots 2-4 in the women’s 200 free. Valette led DU with a second place finish, clocking in at 1:53.22. Denver’s senior class continued its impressive start to the meet when Hugo Sykes (Weston, Conn.) took first in the men’s 200 free with a time of 1:41.71.

Sofia Nosack highlighted Denver’s 100 back, reaching the wall in 57.95 to take second. Auchinachie won the event on the men’s side with a 48.80, out-swimming teammate Neil Wachtler (Waco, Texas), who finished second in 49.96.

Simon picked up the women’s program’s first individual win on Friday evening, taking the 100 breast with a 1:04.38. For the Denver men, Jager and classmate Anthony Nosack (Beaverton, Ore.) took second and third with times of 56.77 and 56.96, respectively.

Cronin led Denver to a podium sweep in the women’s 200 fly, taking the race with a 2:04.92. Junior Uma Knaven (Chapel Hill, N.C.) and classmate Deniz Ozkan (Istanbul, Turkey) completed the top three spots for the Pioneers.

Denver’s women made it three wins in three events when senior Sarah Lingen (Maple Grove, Minn.) reached the wall first in the 50 free with a 24.35. Farber completed the Denver sprint sweep with his NCAA B Standard time of 19.87.

Valette got back in the water after a swimming break for diving, and won the 100 free with a time of 51.16. Auchinachie won the men’s race to complete a four-for-four effort in the short freestyle races for the Pioneers with his 44.68.

Sophomore Patrick Groters (Santa Cruz, Aruba) and Sofia Nosack each turned in second place performances in the 200 back for the men’s and women’s programs with times of 1:52.90 and 2:05.48.

Simon and junior Ally Yancy (Cave Creek, Ariz.) took 1-2 in the women’s 200 breast to get the Pioneers back in the win column on Friday. Simon reached the wall in 2:19.06. Anthony Nosack took the men’s race with a 2:06.53, out-touching his closest opponent by 0.31 seconds.

In the final distance race of the night, Johnston won the 500 free with a 5:09.82, and Gilbert reached the final wall in 4:37.28 to sweep the 500s for the Pioneers.

Cronin completed her butterfly sweep with a 55.04 in the 100 fly.

Denver capped off the meet with a victory in the men’s 400 free relay. Farber, Spencer Adrian (Portland, Ore.), Auchinachie and Sykes combined for a time of 2:59.89.

Freshman Jason Gleason (Olalla, Wash.) finished second in the 1-meter dive for the men to highlight the Pioneers diving efforts on Friday.

Courtesy Wyoming Athletics:

LARAMIE, Wyo. (Jan. 10, 2020) – The Wyoming swimming and diving teams wrapped up its home schedule with a split against Denver on Friday night. The Cowgirls (6-2 overall, 2-1 MW) recorded a 156-144 victory over Pioneers while the Cowboys (2-2 overall, 1-0 WAC) dropped a tough one, 165-135.

“Overall, Denver is a phenomenal program and extremely talented on both the men’s and women’s side,” head coach Dave Denniston said. “I thought the fight of both of our squads showed especially in the later part of the meet is something we can really learn and grow from. It sets us up for our remaining dual meets and the rest of the season. I really like where we are at on both sides. We have great leadership from our seniors and they’ve done it by example. They come in get to work, set the standard and expectation of this team and it really showed in this meet.”

Both squads opened up the meet with a second place finish in the 200-yard medley relay. The team of freshman Emily Giles, sophomore Phoebe Browne, junior Hannah Mclean-Leonard and sophomore Lainee Jones touched the wall in a time of 1:45.02. The men followed that up with a mark of 1:29.72 with the team of senior Tyler Klatt, sophomore Grant Sloan, junior Brayden Love and senior PJ Musser.

In the women’s 1000 freestyle, senior Daniela Luna Rocha notched the first win of the day for the Cowgirls with a time of 10:32.73. Freshman Roxanna Ramirez was also in the points with a third place time of 10:50.33. For the men, two Cowboys finished in the scoring. Sophomore Ryan Netzel went 9:55.55 for a third place spot while senior Seth Borgert went 10:09.03 to place fifth.

Sophomore Lainee Jones recorded a first place finish in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:52.70. Freshman Olivia Staver touched the wall in 1:57.41 to take fifth followed by sophomore Maggie Clerkin and senior Ellie Hohensinner with times of 1:58.92 and 2:03.88, respectively. Senior Jacob Harlan finished second in a time of 1:42.99 while Crump had a season best time of 1:44.20.

In the 100 backstroke, three Cowgirls would get in the scoring column. The trio would be led by sophomore Katelyn Blattner who won the event with a time of 57.21. Giles was third with a mark of 58.16 followed by sophomore Molly Green in a time of 1:00.17. The men were led by Klatt who placed third with a time of 50.20 and fellow senior Sean Calkins in sixth with a time of 52.72.

In the women’s 100 breaststroke, Phoebe Browne touched the wall in a time of 1:05.83 to place second. Rylie Pilon and Stephanie Grandin finished fourth and fifth with times of 1:07.58 and 1:07.69. Sophomore Mitchell Hovis took first for the Cowboys in a time of 56.58, while Sloan went 58.31 for place fourth.

The men swept the 200 butterfly led by Love who finished first with a time of 1:49.60. Freshmen Thomas Diaz and Cameron Murphy finished second and third with times of 1:53.49 and 1:55.64, respectively.

In the 50 freestyle, sophomore Avery Otto-Horn was just two tenths off her season-best with a time of 24.68. Fellow sophomore Sani Carsrud placed second with a time of 24.78 and senior Kiana Junior touched the wall in fourth with a time of 24.98. On the men’s side, Musser was second with a time of 21.07 followed closely by Sloan with a mark of 21.23.

After the diving break, Jones would record a second place finish in the 100 freestyle with a time of 52.33, while Carsrud placed fifth in 53.73. Musser also finish second for the men touching the wall in 45.86. Sophomore James Bouda finished in fifth with a time of 46.65.

Blattner won her second event of the night with a win in the 200 yard backstroke in a time of 2:02.99. Giles placed third with a time of 2:06.92 followed by sophomore Andrea Niemann in 2:08.47. Klatt won his first event of the night touching the wall in 1:51.49. Calkins was fourth with a mark of 1:55.93 followed by sophomore Miller Browne in a time of 1:55.98.

In the 200 breaststroke, sophomore Mitchell Hovis placed second with a time of 2:06.84. The top finisher for the women was junior Rylie Pilon who finished third with a time of 2:26.90.

The Cowgirls had a strong showing the 500 freestyle with three out of the top four finishers. Freshman Olivia Staver placed second with a mark of 5:13.41. Luna Rocha was third in her time of 5:15.21 followed by Clerkin in a time of 5:16.66. For the men, Netzel was second with a time of 4:44.62 while senior Jacob Harlan scored in fifth place with a time of 4:47.99.

In the 100 butterfly, two Cowboys and Cowgirls were in the points. Mclean-Leonard was second with a time of 55.44, while Otto-Horn placed fourth with a time of 59.22. Love would win the event on the men’s side with a time of 48.24. Bouda was fourth with a season-best time of 51.29.

Phoebe Browne won the 200 IM with a season-best time of 2:07.67, beating her old mark by over two seconds. Niemann was also in the points with a 2:09.47 to finish third. The men were solid in the event with three in the scoring column. Freshman Thomas Diaz completed the sweep for the two teams winning the event in 1:55.80. Klatt was close behind touching the wall in 1:56.28. Love completed his night in third with a time of 1:57.04.

It was neck and neck between the women with it coming down to the final race of the night in the 400 freestyle relay. The team of Blattner, Giles, Carsrud and Jones edged out the team of Valette, Lingen, Linsay and Leckie with a time of 3:28.14. Musser, Bouda, Crump and Netzel helped the men to a second place spot in a time of 3:05. 58.

“Between the women, it was a battle all day and came down to a point here or there. I told Phoebe (Browne) and Andrea (Niemann) that someone needed to win the 200 IM because that was the only way we had a chance to win the meet. They both told me they could do it and Phoebe ended up winning in one of the best races I’ve seen her swim. The ladies took care of the relay at the end. On the men’s side, Brayden (Love) has just gone to the next level, which was apparent how he dominated his races. Mitch (Hovis) was solid and Thomas (Diaz) winning the 200 IM was big for our team.”

On the boards, the Cowgirls would get off to a strong start by sweeping the 3-meter event. For the women, redshirt junior Karla Contreras finished first with a season-best 325.05. Sophomore Abigail Zoromski also had a season-best mark of 268.05 to place second while freshman Melissa Mirafuentes was third and a score of 262.80. For the men, sophomore Brendan Byrnes would put on a strong showing posting a score of 288.68 to take first. Junior Elijah Chan finished right behind in second with a season-best score of 265.73.

In the 1-meter event, the Cowgirls went 1-2-3 including Contreras at the top of the podium. She finished with a season-high score of 315.30. Mirafuentes would take second tallying a final score 294.38 while Houlihan would follow with a score of 227.33. For the men, Byrnes would earn another first place finish with a season-best score of 300.15. The mark would meet the NCAA Zone “E” qualifying standard. Freshman Payton Lee placed third with a career-best 273.90 as did Chan with a mark of 269.70 to finish fourth.

The Cowboys and Cowgirls will be back in the pool next week on the road. Both squads will face Cal Baptist on Thursday, Jan. 16, followed by a conference match-up with the UNLV Rebels on Saturday, Jan. 18. Thursday’s meet is scheduled for 2 p.m. MT in Riverside, Calif., while Saturday is set to begin at 1 p.m. in Las Vegas, Nev.