GUNNISON, Colo.  Western swimming and diving racked up first-place finishes in 10 of 13 individual events and both relays in sweeping the opening day of the two-day double-duals against Colorado State University Pueblo and University of Nebraska Kearney.

The Mountaineers earned a 216-62 win over CSUP, and a 224-57 victory over UNK at the Paul Wright Natatorium. Kearney squeaked by Pueblo, 139-137, in the other dual-meet scoring.

Western got off to a rousing start with a four-second victory in the first event, the 200-yard medley relay, with Riley Taylor, Trinity Caudle, Joanna Swiderska and Makenna Lambert combining for a first-place time of 1 minute, 50.68 seconds.

The momentum rolled right into the initial individual event of the 15-event schedule as Morgan Nielsen (11:16.80), Sophia Del Rosario (11:30.56) and Sidney-Ann Morris (11:45.99) went 1-2-3 for the Mountaineers in the 1,000 freestyle.

Lambert picked up the first of two individual wins with her 1:58.00 finish in the 200 free. She would later hit the pads first in the 100 free (54.95 seconds).

Swiderska would come in second to Lambert in the 200, with a time of 2:04.12, but came back to take the prize in the 100 butterfly, posting a season-best time of 59.74.

That race, late in the meet, was another 1-2-3 for Western, as Adessa Talbot and Taylor would touch ahead of all other competitors except for Swiderska. Talbot (1:01.51) and Taylor (1:03.03) both posted season bests in the event.

Taylor earned a first-place finish early in the meet with a season best 28.15 in the 50 backstroke, and in the next event it was Caudle (31.65) and Demi Blaylock (32.96) going 1-2 for Western in the 50 breaststroke.

Ella Fries, who placed second in the 50 free (25.61) came back to finish first in the 100 breaststroke, with a season best of 1:08.75, while Leah Wagner (1:09.84) was third, also with a season best.

Wagner (2:17.40) was first to the finish late in the meet with a win in the 200 individual medley, two events after Nielsen won the 500 free (5:29.41) in a season best time.

Midway through the event schedule it was Western's trio of divers taking center stage, and adding another 1-2-3 sweep. Alexandra Wallis would post a score of 230.15 to capture the 1-meter (6 dives) event, with Chloe Brown (210.75) in second and Ashlynn Mixon (188.95) in third with a new personal high score for 1m, 6 dives.

The Mountaineers finished the afternoon with a victory in the 200 free relay as Madi Zach, Taylor, Swiderska and Lambert teamed up for a time of 1:43.18, more than two seconds ahead of the Kearney relay.

UP NEXT
All three teams will move to the Sam Jones Aquatic Center in Pueblo, Colo., where another double-dual between Western, Pueblo and Kearney will take place Saturday morning.

The relays lengthen to 400 yards, diving goes up onto the 3-meter board, and the stroke order remains the same but with either the shorter or longer version of the event.