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HAYWARD, Calif. — The Cal State East Bay swim team is set for the three-day Trailblazer Invite hosted by Dixie State, beginning on Thursday Nov. 18 at HPC Pool in St. George, Utah.

All three days of action will be streamed live here.

East Bay is ranked No. 20 in last week's latest Division-II CSCAA Top 25, and will face stiff Division-I competition this week including Dixie State, BYU, UC San Diego, UC Santa Barbara, New Mexico State, Loyola Marymount, Pepperdine, Northern Colorado, Cal State Bakersfield and UC Davis. 

However, Pioneers head coach Shane Pelton said his team cherishes these opportunities against some of the top programs in the west.

"We build our schedule on preparing our team for the end of the year," said Pelton. "If you're going to be a top Division II program in the country, you can't be afraid to race some of the top programs the west coast has to offer, regardless of Division.

"It's no different than what the NCAA Championship looks like. If you can race and perform this weekend, you're ready for anything."

Senior distance swimmer Maddie Wittkowske had a big weekend in East Bay's last competition at the UC Santa Cruz Slug Shootout and the Bay Area Invitational on Oct. 29 and 30, as the Stockton native placed first in the 500, 1000 and 1650 freestyles en route to earning PCSC Swimmer of the Week honors on Nov. 2.

Wittkowske finished the 500 in 5-minutes, 14.65-seconds, posted a time of the 1000 in 10:49.14 and had a mark of 18:04.21 in the 1650, with the latter two being the top times for the PCSC conference in the 1000 and 1650. 

In addition, Senior Alondra Ortiz continued her strong start to the season by earning first-place finishes in the 100 backstroke (59.01) and 200 backstroke (2:09.02). Sophomore teammate Olivia Parham edged Ortiz for the top finish in the 100 butterfly, posting a mark of 59.74.

Sophomore Chenoa Bodero placed first in the 400 individual medley with a time of 4:39.99, senior Isabel Rishwain was first in the 500 free, and the Pioneer 400 medley relay team of Ortiz, freshman Delaney Carlson, freshman Emma Knott and junior Jacqueline Feurtado took the top spot in 4:01.83. 

While Pelton wouldn't single out any individual swimmer, he's excited to see how the team performs as a whole.

"This meet will show a lot about the overall direction of the team," said Pelton. "What I would love to see is leaving this weekend with as many athletes in the top 10 of our conference for their individual events and all of our relays having the top time in the conference.

"I always have high expectations, but in reality, I am excited to see what we can do suited up with a little rest. It's been over a year and half for many of our swimmers, but we have 14 athletes I have never watched race in a tech suit. No doubt they will swim great, but no matter, we are going to learn a lot and have a lot to build off of for the future."