Pittsburgh, Pa. – The Duquesne University swimming and diving team cruised to a 156-85 victory over St. Bonaventure on Saturday afternoon at Towers Pool, celebrating Senior Day in dominant fashion.

The Dukes recorded 21 top-three finishes on the day, highlighted by 10 gold medals, two silver, and nine bronze.

Duquesne opened the meet strong in the 200 medley relay, as the team of sophomore Sierra Snow, senior Sydney Severini, sophomore Ashley Freel, and freshman Lucy Backus captured first place with a time of 1:45.17. The Dukes also earned third in the event, with freshman Norah Kotnik and sophomores Jess Burns, Rachel Howard, and Kaitlyn Connors finishing at 1:47.33.

Momentum continued in the 200 freestyle, where Snow claimed first with a time of 1:54.03, while junior Lexi Sundgren placed third at 1:55.91. Snow went on to secure another victory in the 500 freestyle, touching the wall at 5:06.01.

The 200 individual medley followed, with the Dukes capturing gold and bronze in the event. Severini touched the wall first at 2:07.88, while freshman Kira Schrecongost earned third with a time of 2:09.65. Severini continued her strong performance by claiming first place in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:05.49), as Burns finished second at 1:05.83.

In the 50-yard freestyle, Backus took home gold with a time of 23.82, while Burns followed in third at 24.76. The 100-yard butterfly saw Freel capture first place with a time of 55.34, while senior Claudia Rzeznik placed third (58.26). Freel added another victory in the 100-yard backstroke, touching the wall at 56.39, as Kotnik earned bronze with a time of 58.00.

Howard added a first-place finish in the 100-yard freestyle, while the relay team of Connors, Howard, Burns, and Backus captured gold in the 200 freestyle relay with a time of 1:35.80.

The meet concluded with the 400 freestyle relay, where Duquesne earned both first and third place. The team of Connors, Backus, Snow, and Freel claimed the top spot with a time of 3:32.78, while Howard, freshman Emily Kyre, Sundgren, and senior Katie Simpson finished third at 3:37.64.

OFF THE BOARDS
The Duquesne diving team also turned in several top-three finishes. In the one-meter dive, senior Ashley Felitsky led the way with a second-place score of 253.88, while graduate student Lola Dragosavac followed closely in third with a score of 253.58. Sophomore Brianne Dempsey placed fifth with a score of 243.15, and junior Erin Castagnero rounded out the event with a score of 216.75.

In the three-meter dive, Felitsky added a bronze medal, posting a score of 258.08. Dempsey finished fourth with a score of 248.25, while Dragosavac recorded a score of 243.45 to place fifth.

UP NEXT
The Duquesne diving team returns to action on Saturday, Feb. 7, when it competes against Clarion and Grove City in Clarion, Pa. The swimming team will next compete at the Atlantic 10 Championships, scheduled for Wednesday, Feb. 18 through Saturday, Feb. 21.