Men’s coach Pete Motekaitis said Saturday’s dual with Cal State Bakersfield made for a good day at the Schaal Aquatics Center.
That could be called an understatement.
Both UC Davis‘ men’s and women’s teams posted decisive victories, knocking off the Roadrunners 160-117 and 162-123, respectively.
The men’s dual record improved to 8-3 with the win, while the women moved to 8-10. UC Davis swept the first nine events of the day before racing the remaining events in exhibition.
This marks the third straight Aggies sweep the ‘Runners, and the sixth consecutive season that the women have overpowered Bakersfield in duals.
“We were better then we were at Pacific, which means we are heading in a positive direction,” Motekaitis said.
Sophomore Linda Hermann and junior Ross Underwood each won multiple individual events.
Hermann won the 100-yard backstroke and 100-yard freestyle in times of 1:00.57 and 54.29, respectively.
Underwood dominated the sprint events, winning the 50- (21.23), 100- (46.44), and 200-yard freestyles (1:42.88).
The women were able to showcase some of their young talent, as four freshmen won individual events. Kayleigh Foley won the 200 free and Jodi Hanson took the 200 fly while Katelyn Griffin and Buffy Ajimura claimed the 50 free and 500 free, respectively.
Seniors Emily Medved and Mary Struempf also won individual events, taking first place in the 200 IM and the 100 breast, respectively.
As did freshmen, Keegan Groot in the 200 breast, and and Reid Hartz 200 fly.
Other winners for the men’s were Scott Weltz in the 200 back, Kyle Anderson in the 200 breast and BJ Scoogan in the 200 IM.
The men also swept the competitive 100-yard freestyle, with Underwood winning the race and Scoogan just out-touching teammates Trent Richardson and Derek Baldwin to claim the second spot.
Also making an impact in the pool was the diving team. The meet marked the return of the squad after a two-month hiatus. Sophomore Paul Navo won multiple events, claiming victory in the low board and high board with scores of 246.90 and 263.18.
The Aggies will hit the water at the Schaal Aquatics Center once again on Saturday, as they host Big West Conference rival UC Irvine. The dual begins at noon, and will pay tribute to the UC Davis seniors.
“Irvine will be good,” Motekaitis said. “They have a fantastic dual team, and will definitely keep our hands full. Going against them will hopefully end our [regular] season on a positive note.“
ANDREA GUTIERREZ can be reached at sports@theaggie.org.
