NEW ORLEANS, La. – After nearly two months away from competition, the William Carey University swim teams made a strong statement in their return to the pool, highlighted by the Crusader men's decisive 129–97 victory over Loyola University. The Lady Crusaders split their matchups on the day, defeating Loyola 148–57 while falling to the University of West Florida 129–86.
 
The meet opened with strong relay performances. The WCU women secured a second-place finish in the 200-yard medley relay behind the team of Grace Funck, Chloe Picon, Bisma Khan, and Brooks Sipes, followed closely by a third-place finish from Amabile Scabacino, Kelsey Shand, Abbie Krot, and Chloe Lee. On the men's side, the Crusaders dominated the event as Yusuf Balaban, Hunter Boudreau, Nedas Giedraitis, and Janos Szabo took first, with Adam Hossam, Joshua Pratt, Blaise Boyd, and Josiah Blankenship finishing second.
 
In distance events, Eszter Kardos placed third in the women's 1000-yard freestyle, while the Crusader men swept the top two spots with Miguel Vieira and Braedan Jacobs finishing one–two. Szabo kept the momentum going with a win in the men's 200-yard freestyle, as Blankenship added a third-place finish.
 
Backstroke and breaststroke events saw strong performances across both squads. Funck and Scabacino placed second and third in the women's 100-yard backstroke, while Hossam claimed first on the men's side. In the 100-yard breaststroke, Picon won the women's race with Shand and Fia Martin also finishing in the top five. Boudreau led the men with a first-place finish, followed by Giedraitis in third.
 
WCU continued to rack up points in the butterfly and sprint freestyle events. Krot and Kardos finished second and third in the women's 200-yard butterfly, while Balaban and Vieira swept the men's event. Khan and Sipes added another second–third finish in the women's 50-yard freestyle. Hossam clocked a winning time of 21.15 in the men's 50-yard freestyle.
 
Additional standout performances included Lee's third-place finish in the women's 100-yard freestyle and Krot's runner-up placement in the 200-yard backstroke. Sipes earned second in the women's 200-yard breaststroke, while Boudreau and Szabo went one–two for the men in the same event.
 
Both squads put up big results in the 500-yard freestyle, with Scabacino winning for the Lady Crusaders and Jacobs taking first for the men. Kardos added a second-place finish in the women's 100-yard butterfly, while Giedraitis won the men's race.
 
In the 200-yard individual medley, Funck placed third and Picon fourth for the women. Balaban dominated the men's race, finishing six seconds ahead of his nearest competitor.
 
The meet concluded with the freestyle relays. The women's team of Kardos, Krot, Funck, and Scabacino earned second in the 400-yard relay, while Sipes, Lee, Khan, and Picon placed fourth. The men capped the day with a victory by the team of Hossam, Szabo, Boyd, and Jacobs, with Boudreau, Blankenship, Giedraitis, and Balaban securing third.
 
WCU returns to action on Saturday, January 24, hosting Loyola University at the Biloxi Natatorium. Competition begins at 11:30 a.m.