Hampton, Va. – The Duquesne swimming and diving team wrapped up competition at the Atlantic 10 Championships on Saturday with a third-place finish, totaling 516.5 points, the sixth-highest mark in program history.

The Dukes secured third place for the second consecutive year and extended their streak of top-four finishes to 12 straight seasons. Richmond captured the team title with 600 points, while defending champion George Washington placed second with 572.5. La Salle finished fourth with 477 points, and Fordham rounded out the top five with 377.

Sophomore Sierra Snow continued her standout championship performance, earning another gold medal with a personal-best time of 1:55.15 in the 200-yard backstroke. Freshman Norah Kotnik advanced to the finals and placed seventh overall with a time of 2:00.71. Sophomore Caitlin Horning added to the Dukes point total in the consolation final, finishing in 2:04.26.

In the 200-yard butterfly, Duquesne secured a pair of medals behind standout performances from sophomore Ashley Freel and senior Claudia Rzeznik. Freel claimed silver with a time of 1:59.49, improving on her prelims mark of 2:01.37. Rzeznik followed with a personal-best 2:00.48 to earn bronze. Freshman Kira Schrecongost and junior Julia Sobun also competed in the consolation finals, posting times of 2:04.89 and 2:08.03, respectively.

Sophomore Kaitlyn Connors advanced to the consolation final of the 100 freestyle, recording a time of 50.56. In the 200-yard breaststroke, senior Sydney Severini and sophomore Jess Burns earned spots in the championship final. Severini placed fourth with a time of 2:14.88, while Burns finished eighth in 2:17.02.

On the diving board, sophomore Brianne Dempsey reached the championship final and placed eighth with a score of 231.35. Graduate student Lola Dragosavac competed in the consolation final, posting a score of 237.50.

The Atlantic 10 Championships concluded with the 400 freestyle relay, as the team of Connors, freshman Lucy Backus, Snow, and Freel placed fourth with a time of 3:22.53.

As a team, Duquesne recorded more than 18 personal-best performances over the four-day meet and captured 10 medals, four gold, two silver, and four bronze, while breaking three school records to cap an impressive showing.

QUOTABLE
"Our goal every year is to go to A-10's and compete for a championship," head coach David Sheets said. "To be able to win, a team has to be able to put together four really good days in the pool and off the boards. We missed some opportunities and left too many points out there for other teams to get. We had a lot of great swims, new school records, all time top tens, and personal bests. Although we fell short I'm proud of the way the ladies stuck together and supported each other through all four days."

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