Iowa State University’s women’s swimming and diving team finished eighth at the Hawkeye Invitational in Iowa City, closing the event with 703 points. The Cyclones showed improvement from last year, when they scored 355 points.
“Last year, we scored just 355 points, and this year we are at 703, so we’re doing a really good job with that,” said head coach Matt Leach. “I just want to raise everyone’s level. To be able to help to help contribute, not only here at dual meets but also at the Big 12s. So we’re excited to see what the future holds, but we’ve got some more work to do.”
During the final session, Iowa State secured early points in the 1650 freestyle through performances by Corinne Guist, Carlotta Gazzola and Miray Abay. In the 200 backstroke finals, Emma Kuhn and Lili Neisser both competed for Iowa State.
Freshman Piper Hagen reached another finals appearance in the 100 freestyle. The team had four finalists in the 200 breaststroke: Abbi Crum, Matilde Geromin, Anja Peck and Grace Swoboda.
In the 200 butterfly event, Keirlyn Mullica, Kendall Mallers and Miray Abay added more points for Iowa State. On the diving boards, five Cyclone divers made it into platform finals. Senior Kate Mitchell led with a fourth-place finish in the A-final (236.65), while freshman Jade Hazes placed seventh (218.85). Four other divers contributed key scores in the B-final: Grace Marek (217.50), Ally Blumenfeld (214.60), Maggie Bendell (213.90) and Abby Tollefson (197.05).
The Cyclones concluded with three scoring teams in the 400 freestyle relay; their A-relay of Hagen, Swoboda, Kuhn and Guist placed 14th overall.
Next on their schedule is participation at two upcoming events from December 4-6: the dive team will compete at the Minnesota Invitational in Minneapolis while qualified swimmers will attend the US Open Championships in Austin, Texas.
