Final Results

SANTA ROSA, Calif. -- Sophomore Claire Beaty highlighted a strong weekend for Cal State East Bay as she set a new school record in the 200 yard breaststroke with a time of 2:19.99 at the Christmas Invitational at Santa Rosa Junior College, beating her own record of 2:20.79 that she set last February at the PCSC Championships in La Mirada. She finished third overall in the "A" final with a swim that ranks No. 25 in the nation.

Overall, the Pioneer swim team finished in second place in the Christmas Invitational with 1,050 points. Cal Baptist, which entered the week as the No. 6 ranked team in the country, took first with 1,187 points. East Bay topped Fresno Pacific (671 points) and UC Santa Cruz (363 points) in the three-day event.

Junior Madison Hauanio also impressed, finishing with an NCAA B-cut time of 2:06.28 in the 200 Individual Medley, good for third in the "A" final . She is currently the No. 22 ranked swimmer in the NCAA in that event.

The 200 medley relay team didn't disappoint either, providing the squad with a highlight in the second day of the meet. The team of junior Mariam Lowe, senior Makila Schuck, freshman Vivy Hua, and Hauanio finished with a time of 1:46.21 and took second place in the event.

The 400 freestyle relay team, consisting of senior Alyssa Littlefield, senior Hannah Cutts, freshman Cassidy Humphrey, and Hauanio, clocked in at 3:29.70 and notched East Bay's only first-place finish of the weekend. That time puts them at No. 13 in the nation.

"I was very proud of our 400 freestyle Rrelay," said head coach Ben Loorz. "That is an outstanding time for mid-season, and it was a new mix of athletes who put that race together for us."

The 800 free relay team of Hauanio, senior Rachel Shimizu, junior Mariam Lowe, and Humphrey finished with a time of 7:41.44, good for second in the event and No. 17 currently in the NCAA. CSUEB's "B" team of Cutts, freshman Jande Monteon, freshman Annalena Assaiante, and sophomore Kali Kearns placed a spot behind their Pioneer teammates in third with a time of 7:53.97.

It was a strong overall performance for the Pioneers, but the team is still focused on where they can improve before the PCSC Championships in February.

"We had a lot of close opportunities at this meet that we need to get better at seizing," said Loorz. "Having said that, we improved each day and finished the meet stronger than we started. And perhaps, most importantly, it was a great prep meet for the conference championships in eight weeks. We did a lot of swimming, and were really able to learn what is on the agenda for training and racing as we roll into the New Year."

Before the conference championships, the Pioneers have four more dual meets, starting with a Wednesday, Dec. 30 date at conference rival and No. 5 team in the nation UC San Diego.