Duquesne vs. George Mason, Cleveland State, Lafayette (Diving)
Friday, Jan. 17, 2025 • 5:00 p.m.
Pittsburgh, Pa. • Carnegie Mellon

Duquesne vs. George Mason & Cleveland State (Swimming)
Saturday, Jan. 18, 2025 • 11:00 a.m.
Pittsburgh, Pa. • Towers Pool

Take Your Mark … BEEP
- The Duquesne University swimming & diving team returns to action this weekend while celebrating Senior Day. The diving team will compete on Friday, Jan. 17 against George Mason, Cleveland State, and Lafayette at Carnegie Mellon while the swimming team battles the Patriots and Vikings at Towers Pool on Saturday, Jan. 18.

- The Dukes opened the 2025 calendar year with consecutive home meets against Akron and Buffalo last weekend inside Towers Pool. Duquesne dropped a 257-117 decision to the Zips on Friday night before bouncing back and securing a 163-137 victory over the Bulls.

- Against Akron, the 200-yard medley kicked things off, with the team of Abby Philipsen, Sydney Severini, Ashely Freel, and Katie Simpson securing the bronze with a time of 1:47.49. Freshman Ashley Freel highlighted the Dukes, securing a pair of first-place finishes.

- She secured the gold in the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 2:05.10 before taking the top spot in the 50-yard back by touching the wall at 27.10. The freshman also swam the third leg of the 400-yard medley relay that secured silver with a time of 3:52.90.

- Senior Orla Egan captured a first-place finish in the 500-yard freestyle while touching the wall at 5:06.20 while classmate Haley Scholer secured the top spot in the 200-yard freestyle by clocking in a time of 1:54.06. Scholer also took bronze in the 100-yard fly (57.71).

- Freshman Sierra Snow captured a silver medal in the 200-yard IM (2:10.50) while taking bronze in the 100-yard IM (1:02.20). Classmate Caitlin Horning captured the silver in the 200 fly with a time of 2:11.32. Freshman Rachel Howard took second in the 200-yard backstroke (2:1507) while junior Sydney Severini took the silver in the 50-yard breaststroke with a time of 30.82.

- In the 50-yard free, sophomore Julia Sobun secured the bronze by touching the wall at 25.30. Freshman Kaitlyn Connors took third in the 50-yard fly (26.83) while sophomore Lexi Sundgren finished in third in the 1000-yard freestyle (10:43.92). Connors also took the bronze in the 100-freestyle with a time of 53.87.

- Junior Aislinn Mooney secured a third-place finish with the 100-yard breaststroke by touching the wall at 1:12.11. The 200 freestyle team of Sobun, Egan, Sundgren, and Howard registered a third place finish with a time of 1:38.34 while the 400-yard medley relay team of Scholer, freshman Jessica Burns, Freel, and Connors ended the event with a second-place finish with a time of 3:52.90.

Senior Celebration – Before Saturday's meet against George Mason and Cleveland State, the Dukes will honor five seniors and thank them for their contributions and dedication to the program. Duquesne will recognize, Julia Doolittle, Orla Egan, Kendra Joachim, Kendall Nigh, and Haley Scholer.

Charging Past Buffalo – Bouncing back against the Bulls, the Dukes featured 10 first-place finishes to secure the victory. Four different Dukes shined at the meet, each securing multiple gold medals in impressive fashion. Senior Orla Egan set the tone early, claiming the first gold of the day in the second event. She dominated the 1000-yard freestyle, touching the wall at 10:32.89, and followed up with another victory in the 500-yard freestyle, clocking in at 5:08.84. Freshman Sierra Snow also made her mark in the 1000 free, earning the bronze with a time of 10:45.78. Freshman Jess Burn showcased her prowess in the breaststroke events, taking gold in both the 100-yard breaststroke (1:06.04) and the 200-yard breaststroke (2:23.88). Her classmate, Ashley Freel, delivered standout performances in the butterfly events, posting a time of 2:04.80 in the 200 fly and 57.09 in the 100 butterfly to secure top honors in both. Freel added to her medal haul with a bronze in the 200-yard IM (2:09.98).

Senior Haley Scholer added to the Dukes' success with a first-place finish in the 200-yard backstroke, clocking in at 2:03.45, and another gold in the 200 IM with a time of 2:06.66. Scholer also secured a silver medal in the 100 backstroke, recording a time of 56.59.

Welcome To The Bluff – This past July, head coach David Sheets announced the hiring of Matt Brinton as assistant coach for the Dukes. Brinton joins the swimming & diving team after spending the last three seasons as the head coach at Division II Frostburg State. Under his tutelage, Brinton led the women's swimming team to three consecutive Mountain East Conference titles (2022, 2023, 2024) while leading the men's team to back-to-back MEC Championships (2023, 2024). On the women's side, he coached 26 individual conference champions while tallying 12 on the men's team, including an NCAA consideration qualifier. In his final season, he featured the MEC Men's Swimmer of the Year before headlining both the men's and women's Swimmer of the Year as well as the MEC Women's Rookie of the Year in 2023. Brinton has been awarded the MEC Coach of the Year four total times, winning the prestigious honor back-to-back seasons on both the men's and women's side (2023, 2024).

FOLLOW THE DUKES
For the latest Duquesne Swimming & Diving news and updates, follow the Dukes on social media on Twitter (X) and Instagram.