ST. PAUL, Minn. - The Concordia-St. Paul women's swimming and diving team is set to take part in the WildBear Invite starting on Thursday at the Butler Center on the campus of St. Catherine University.
The meet is scheduled to last Nov. 20-22 in St. Paul, Minn. All three days of competition will consist of prelims at 9:30 a.m. with finals scheduled for 5:30 p.m on Thursday/Friday and 4:30 p.m. on Saturday.
Head coach, Rachel Busch on the meet, "Our team is excited to experience all of their hard work pay off in the pool, both from the blocks and off the boards. Our swimmers have done a three-day rest going into the meet and are looking very speedy in the water. Our divers are continuing to learn new dives and polish up their existing dive lists, all set for strong performances at the meet."
Busch added, "Our season has been off to a strong start. It was fun to win our first meet of the year and continue refining technique and developing power in the water. The WildBear Invite will be a strong testament to the dedication the team has been putting forth."
LAST TIME OUT
Dual: MSUM 163, CSP 137
Sophie Leo continued her season-dominance with three top-finishes to bring her season total to nine.Leo continued her star-studded day, breaking the Nemzek Pool record in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 52.76.
Marianna Perna earned her first top-finish of the season, taking first in the 1000-yard freestyle with a time of 11:37.76.
Claire Briest found herself victorious in the 100-yard breaststroke and the 200-yard breaststroke, marking her second and third wins of the season to mark her strongest meet of the season.
On the diving board, sophomore Chloe Jones notched two top-five finishes, including a third-place finish in the 3-meter dive with a score of 211.25.
As a team, the Golden Bears tallied a season-high 41 top-five placements and 25 top-three finishes.
SOPHIE SURGES AHEAD
With her three first-place finishes on Saturday, Leo is up to a season-total of nine and 29 collegiate victories.
Leo has notched two NSIC Swimmer of the Week accolades thus far and is always a swimmer to watch at each meet she competes in.
Busch on Leo's standout start, "Wow, what a remarkable season Sophie is having so far. She has dialed in on her sleep, and pairing that with intense focus both in the pool and in the weight room, she is swimming faster than ever at this point in the season."
MEET INFORMATION
The meet will consist of five teams across NCAA Division II and NCAA Division III. Participating schools include Augsburg, Jamestown, Concordia-St. Paul, Northern State and St. Kate's (Host).
Scoring for the meet will be as follows: Individual events will have A/B/C finals with only A&B scoring. Top two relays from each school will be scored. All relays will swim in finals.
Diving Information: Divers will compete just Friday and Saturday. Prelims on Friday and Saturday will begin at 12:30 pm with finals on Friday at 5:30 pm and Saturday at 4:30 pm
Admission: $5 for prelims, $5 for finals, $25 for 3-day all-session pass.
CSP VS. THE FIELD
Augsburg: The two teams have met a total of three times in duals and have not faced since the 2022-23 season where CSP got a dominant 161-54 win at the Two Rivers Aquatic Center.
Jamestown: The two teams have never met in dual action but they saw each other last season at the Dragon Invite. CSP took second place with 890.5 points with the Jimmies coming in at fifth with 428.5 points.
Northern State: The two teams have met seven times in duals with CSP winning the past two meetings including a 176-45 dual win earlier this season.
St. Kate's: The two teams have met three times in duals with CSP earning a 190-110 win last season and topping the Wildcats in last year's WildBear Invite.
