ST. PAUL, Minn. - Concordia-St. Paul swimming and diving returns to action this Saturday in double-dual action against the No. 24 Minnesota State Mavericks and the Southwest Minnesota State Mustangs. Action is scheduled for 1 p.m. at the Highland Pool/Otto Recreation Center.

This weekend's meet against MSU and SMSU will feature 14 individual or relay events along with 3-meter and 1-meter diving.

"We look forward to racing at MSU-Mankato, which will provide a very competitive meet," commented head coach Rachel Busch. "This is a unique meet for me in that the head coach at SMSU was a college teammate of mine and the coach at MSU was our coach while we competed for the Mavericks."

GREENWALT TO NATIONALS
Golden Bear diver Caitlyn Greenwalt made history once again for CSP swim and dive by becoming the first member to qualify for nationals. The sophomore punched her ticket with a score 270.75 in the three-meter dive against St. Kate's and UMary. Her efforts from last weeks meet earned her recognition by the by conference as she was named the NSIC Women's Diver of the Week for the second time this season.

The NCAA Division II Championships are scheduled to take place March 13-16 in Geneva, Ohio at the SPIRE Aquatics Center.

LAST TIME OUT
St. Kate's and Mary Double-Dual: 1-1
The Golden Bears opened the weekend in dual action against the St. Catherine Wildcats and the University of Mary Marauders last Friday night.

CSP knocked off UMary by a score of 150.50 to 126.50 in their dual but were unable to complete the sweep of the day as they came up short against the hosts with a score of 175.50 to 101.50.

 The Golden Bears tallied five individual wins in the competition as Greenwalt and Farida Maher tallied a pair of victories apiece, while Sophie Leo shared the top spot in the 50 Yard Backstroke as well.

Greenwalt provided the big highlight for CSP as she became the program's first ever national qualifier as her mark of 270.75 in the three-meter dive booked her a spot in the national meet. She took the top spot in the event to go along with a win in the one-meter dive with a mark of 235.75.

Maher picked up wins in the 1000 Yard Freestyle as she finished in 11:00.46 before adding another victory in the 50 Yard freestyle with a time of 25.03.

Leo finished in a tie for first place in the 50 Yard Backstroke as she matched UMary's Maddy Desmond with a time of 28.34. She also wrapped up the 200 Yard Backstroke in 2:15.14 to take second place.

On the team side, the 200 Yard Freestyle Relay team put up a record-setting effort as the mark of 1:42.10 set by Maher, Leo, Rebecca Hildebrand and Emma Granovsky broke the previous school record of 1:43.66 set two seasons ago.

St. Kate's and Mary Pentathlon: 3rd of 3 | 1,602.50 Points
The Golden Bears concluded the weekend in a pentathlon competition against St. Catherine and the University of Mary.

The Wildcats took the top spot in the meet as they tallied 2,908 points, while the Golden Bears fell just behind UMary as they collected 1,604.50 points compared to 1,919.50 points for the Marauders.

Leo was the top finisher for CSP, as her 202 points earned her a seventh-place finish. Her best finish came in the 100 Yard Backstroke as her time of 1:01.78 was good for fourth, while she added a seventh-place result in the 100 Yard Freestyle with a time of 56.66.

Rihon was just six points behind as her total of 196 points put her in ninth. She took fourth in the 100 Yard IM with a time of 1:04.44 and fourth in the 100 Yard Breaststroke with a time of 1:12.85 to aid her effort.

Hildebrand followed close behind in 11^th with 189 points in the meet. She registered four top-11 finishes in five events, highlighted by ninth-place finishes in the 100 Yard Butterfly with a time of 1:02.76 and in the 100 Yard Breaststroke with a time of 1:15.24.

Maher and Sierra Sherry rounded out the top-five finishers for the team as Maher took 21^st with 136 points while Sherry took 26^th with 127.50 points. Maher took second in the 100 Yard Freestyle, finishing in 53.96 to highlight her day.

Other top event finishes came in the one-meter and three-meter dives as Greenwalt won both, while Charly Horn took fifth in the 100 Yard Breaststroke with a time of 1:12.97.

HISTORY AGAINST THE MAVERICKS
The two programs are meeting for the third time in dual competition that dates back to October 15, 2021. In the short series between the two programs, CSP has collected 127 points. The Mavericks hold a 2-0 advantage in the series after claiming the first matchup in Mankato and the second matchup last season in the inaugural CSP Home Meet. Last season, Maher led the field for the Golden Bears with three first-place finishes in the 100 Yard Freestyle, the 500 Yard Freestyle and the 1000 Yard Freestyle.

HISTORY AGAINST THE MUSTANGS
The two programs have met five times dating back to October 15, 2021. In the short series between the two programs, CSP has collected 398 points. Southwest Minnesota State has claimed all five of the matchups, but the Golden Bears have inched closer with improved scores each time out as CSP shortened the gap to 36 points last season at the inaugural CSP Home Meet. However, the two squads are no strangers to each other this season after they both competed in the NSU Relay Meet on opening weekend, where the Mustangs took first place with a score of 106 points. The Golden Bears finished with four second-place finishes in the meet.