Day 3 Highlights: Lopes Make Bold Moves to Dominate in Grand Canyon University Athletics

HOUSTON – The Grand Canyon swimming and diving team made great strides at the WAC Championships on Friday, showcasing some impressive performances, especially from the women’s team.

The highlight of the evening was the women’s 100-yard breaststroke. Freshman Beth Young set a new WAC Championships record, finishing in just 1:00.76, earning first place and an NCAA ‘B’ cut. Senior Raphaela Nakashima followed close behind, taking second with a time of 1:01.07, also achieving a ‘B’ cut. Senior Maria Brunlehner rounded out the top three, finishing third at 1:01.56.

The Lopes also won the 400 medley relay. The team, made up of junior Marta Guasp, Nakashima, junior Paula Martinez Moreno, and Brunlehner, clinched victory by nearly three seconds with a time of 3:38.50.

In additional events, senior Fruzsi Macsok took second in the women’s 400-yard individual medley with a time of 4:18.53, followed by fellow senior Aleksandra Wegrzynowska in fourth at 4:21.55. Junior Elisa Corradi also contributed, finishing 10th in 4:25.48.

With these results, the GCU women secured fourth place among nine teams, totaling 359 points. They trail Northern Arizona (531), New Mexico State (398), and California Baptist (376). In the men’s standings, the Lopes also sit fourth, behind UNLV (519), California Baptist (515), and Air Force (410.5).

For the men, sophomore Jasu Ovaskainen finished fifth in the 100 butterfly with a time of 46.89 seconds. Junior Eli Cohen and sophomore Guillermo Carrey tied for 10th place, both finishing in 47.86 seconds. In the 400 individual medley, sophomore Colin Campbell came in eighth at 3:56.97, while junior Timothy Koza won the ‘C’ final with a time of 3:57.06.

Junior Mario Perez led the men’s team in the 200 freestyle, placing third with a time of 1:36.38. Junior Grzegorz Wanat finished 11th (1:38.50), and freshman Batu Servi came in 14th at 1:39.38. In the 100 backstroke, junior Alex Volkov took second with a time of 45.98, also earning an NCAA ‘B’ cut.

In diving, senior Shiori Bak placed seventh in the women’s platform event with 221.60 points, and sophomore Lacey Neighbor followed in 11th with 190.30 points. Freshman Hailey Cate Bull scored 168.70 points to finish 14th. The men’s 400-yard medley relay team, featuring Volkov, Harper Houk, Ovaskainen, and Carrey, secured second place with a time of 3:08.14.

After Friday’s events, GCU stands fourth in the women’s standings with 359 points and fourth in the men’s rankings with 344 points.

Following the exciting performances, day two of the championships showed the Lopes’ continued determination. On Thursday night, senior Maria Brunlehner set a school record in the opening relay with a 50-yard freestyle split of 22.51 seconds.

In the women’s 200-yard individual medley, Macsok secured second place with a time of 2:00.65, with Brunlehner close behind in third at 2:01.26. Junior Marta Guasp also scored points with a seventh-place finish in 2:04.17.

For the men, Ovaskainen placed seventh in the 200 individual medley with a time of 1:46.55. Graduate Harper Houk and junior Carter Dooling finished 13th and 16th, respectively.

In the 50-yard freestyle, Perez shone again, taking third with an NCAA ‘B’ cut time of 19.62 seconds, and Carrey was fourth at 19.66 seconds, also earning a ‘B’ cut. Volkov finished fifth with a time of 19.85 seconds.

Diving was a bright spot, with freshman Omar Elsayed finishing fourth in the men’s 3-meter competition with 356.60 points, while sophomore Bryce Porter placed 11th with 290.70 points. On the women’s side, Neighbor finished 12th in the 1-meter finals with 235.40 points, and Bak was 16th with 200.60 points.

After Thursday’s events, GCU was fifth in the women’s team standings with 165 points and the men’s standings with 173 points.

As the championships progressed, the Lopes kept pushing forward. In the opening day of competition, GCU brought its competitive spirit to the pool. The women’s 200-yard medley relay team came in second place, clocking 1:39.40, just a blink of an eye behind the winning California Baptist team.

The GCU men’s team also had a commendable performance, finishing third in the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:24.96. Unfortunately, their 800 freestyle relay was disqualified after an early start from one of the relay legs.

Perez shined in the medley relay, posting a split of 18.85 seconds in the 50 freestyle, marking it as the third-best in Lopes history. In the diving competitions, Elsayed led the men in the 1-meter event, finishing fourth with 335.15 points, while Porter added to the scores with a 15th-place finish at 247.45 points. Neighbor excelled by winning the consolation round in the women’s 3-meter diving competition, scoring 266.15 points to help GCU’s total.

Throughout the competition, many Lopes achieved personal bests, showcasing their growth and dedication. After the first night, GCU was fifth in the women’s standings with 69 points and sixth in the men’s with 49 points.

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