BILOXI, Miss. – In their first home meet of the season, the WCU men's and women's swim teams showcased their talent against Thomas University. The women dominated, winning every event, while the men narrowly missed sweeping all by one event. The men earned a commanding 165-51 victory, and the women triumphed with a score of 173-40.
 
"I'm really pleased with the teams today," said Head Coach Robert Gonzalez. "They did a great job competing and taking ownership of their races. I believe we are ahead of where we were at this point last year, and I'm excited to gear up for our mid-season meet in Columbus, Ga., in a couple of weeks."
 
The meet began with a strong start as both teams secured wins in the 200-yard medley relay. The women's team—Grace Funck, Chloe Picon, Brooks Sipes, and Eszter Kardos—finished in 1:53.42, four seconds ahead of Thomas. On the men's side, Yusuf Balaban, Hunter Boudreau, Nedas Giedraitis, and Janos Szabo clocked in at 1:34.53, five seconds faster than their opponents. Matthew Hughes, Joshua Pratt, Blaise Boyd, and Miguel Vieira placed third with a time of 1:42.81.
 
In the 1000-yard freestyle, Picon and Braedan Jacobs took first place with times of 11:20 and 10:02, respectively.
 
The 200-yard freestyle saw Carey swimmers claim the top spots—Kardos for the women at 2:02 and Chloe Lee at 2:06. For the men, Josiah Blankenship won in 1:46, while Carter Diecidue finished in 1:55.
 
Grace Funk and Yusuf Balaban continued their winning streaks with times of 1:01 and 52.08 in the 100-yard backstroke. The women's 100-yard breaststroke was a sweep for the Crusaders, with Picon finishing first at 1:08, Sipes second at 1:09, and Kelsey Shand third at 1:10. For the men, Boudreau claimed the top spot in 57.75 seconds, followed by Pratt in 1:02.
 
The victory parade continued with Abbie Krot winning the 200-yard butterfly in 2:15, while Giedraitis and Vieira secured a 1-2 finish with times of 1:58 and 2:00.
 
The women's team also dominated the 50-yard freestyle, taking the top three spots: Bisma Khan in 26.04 seconds, Sipes in 26.30, and Shand in 26.97. Sophia Martin finished fifth with a time of 29.75. On the men's side, Szabo and Boyd took first and second in 21.44 and 21.83 seconds.
 
In the 100-yard freestyle, Lee for the women and Szabo for the men finished on top with times of 57.15 and 46.42. Khan and Blankenship rounded out their respective races in third place.
 
Grace Funk won the 200-yard backstroke in 2:16, though on the men's side, Diecidue's second-place finish in 2:12 broke the streak of first-place finishes.
 
The women continued their sweep with Picon taking first, Sipes second, and Shand third in the 200-yard breaststroke. Boudreau helped restore the men's dominance with a win in 2:07, followed closely by Balaban in second place.
 
Krot led the women in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 5:31, with Victoria Murphy and Martin finishing third and fourth. On the men's side, Vieira and Blankenship took the top two spots in 4:42 and 5:04.
 
Both teams enjoyed a 1-2 finish in the 100-yard butterfly, with Kardos winning the women's event in 1:01 and Khan following in 1:03. Giedraitis led the men's race at 51.82 seconds, with Boyd close behind at 54.57.
 
The meet concluded with Krot claiming first in the 200-yard IM in 2:19, and Balaban finishing first in the men's event in 1:55.
 
Both squads will return to competition on November 20, heading to Columbus, Ga., for the Midseason Invite.