Day 3 Results (PDF)

LA MIRADA, Calif. -- The No. 23 ranked Cal State East Bay swim team hung on to its narrow overall lead during Friday's session of Pacific Collegiate Swim Conference (PCSC) Championships at Splash! Regional Aquatic Center.

The Pioneers have 855 total points through three days of the four-day event, putting them 32 points ahead of No. 22 Fresno Pacific in second place. Pepperdine and Azusa Pacific are close behind the Sunbirds as well. 

CSUEB's biggest perceived strength coming into the meet was its depth. And that was on display Friday as the Pioneers turned in a true team effort and actually extended their advantage in total points, despite not having a top-two finisher in any of the six events. 

It started right away with the 100 Butterfly, a race for which East Bay had six swimmers score points. They accounted for four of the eight spots in the "A" Final, and Allie Klinger led the way during the evening program with third place and a time of 55.66. Victoria Zukeran was right behind her in fifth, Vivy Hua took seventh, and Tatum Roepke finished eighth. Lauren Ostrander scored 10th-place points in the "B" Final, and Sofia Moufarrej added 17th place in the "C" Final. 

The next event was the 400 Individual Medley, and even though CSUEB didn't have anyone finish in the top-six individually, they still accrued the second-most points of any team in the event. Seniors Ryleigh Weight and Laurel Carpenter both qualified for the "A" Final and notched seventh and eighth place finishes, respectively. That pair stepped up for the second day in a row, having both reached the "A" Final of the 200 IM on Thursday as well. Landry Walker added a 14th place effort in the 200 IM for East Bay. 

They continued to rack up points in the next race, as the Pioneers were the only team to qualify three athletes into the "A" Final of the 200 Freestyle. Abigail Mitchell led the way with an impressive sixth place finish in 1:54.42. She was followed closely by Isabel Rishwain in seventh and Serene Augustain in eighth. East Bay also boasted two swimmers in the "B" Final, as Maddie Hulse scored 14th place points and Jande Monteon took 16th. 

The breaststroke events are the only ones on the meet program in which the Pioneers only have one entry, but they were nonetheless well-represented in the scoring for the 100 Breast on Friday. Freshman Rebecca Bay notched a outstanding performance to qualify for the "A" Final, then placed eighth in the championship race with a time of 1:06.43.

That was followed by the 100 Backstroke, during which CSUEB's scoring depth was back on display. They had no one in the top-six finishers, but once again tallied the most total points of any team in the event. Senior Miranda McDonnell qualified for the "A" Final and took seventh place in 59.07. Roepke and freshman Alondra Ortiz were the top two swimmers in the "B" Final, placing ninth and 10th, respectively, and both touching the wall in under 59 seconds.

The final race of the night was the 400 Medley Relay, which saw a dramatic finish between FPU and APU for first, as well as a tight battle between East Bay and Alaska for third. The Pioneers out-touched the Nanooks to secure third place by 0.07 seconds, as the foursome of Roepke, Bay, Zukeran, and Klinger finished with a time of 3:50.79.

The Pioneers will head into the final session of the meet on Saturday looking to maintain their lead and capture the program's first-ever PCSC team championship. Seven events separate CSUEB from the title, as the program features the 1650 Freestyle, 200 Backstroke, 100 Freestyle, 200 Breaststroke, 200 Butterfly, 100 Individual Medley, and 400 Freestyle Relay.