Five USC swimmers won two events apiece while Troy won both relays, turning a close affair halfway through the meet into a comfortable margin by the meet’s end as the No. 14 Trojans defeated No. 17 UCLA, 174.5-125.5, Friday (Feb. 13) at Uytengsu Aquatics Center for USC’s eighth straight win over the Bruins.
The Trojans improved to 5-3 overall, 4-3 in the Pac-12, breaking eight pool and five meet records in the process. UCLA dropped to 7-4, 3-4.
The win also gave USC five points toward the SoCal BWM Crosstown Cup, awarded annually to the school with the most successful athletic year against the other. UCLA still leads, however, 55-15, this season. Troy leads the overall series, 9-4.
USC kicked off the meet with a win in the 200y medley relay as freshman Hannah Weiss, senior Andrea Kropp and juniors Kendyl Stewart and Kasia Wilk won in 1:35.94, 0.22 off the school record and 0.12 under the pool and meet record of 1:36.06 set in 2013.
Trojan sophomore Chelsea Cheneault followed with an incredible swim in the 1000y free, breaking the pool record set by Olympian Haley Anderson (9:41.32) with a 9:33.87, less than three seconds from Anderson’s school record as well.
Junior Jasmine Tosky followed with a win in the 200y free in 1:46.31, edging UCLA’s Monica Dornick (1:46.99) while Trojan junior Joanna Stenkvist was third (1:47.71).
The USC win streak continued in the 100y back as Weiss ran away with the race in 51.92, establishing a new meet and pool records while coming within 0.29 off an NCAA ‘A cut and 0.30 of the school mark. UCLA’s Madison White was second (52.68) with Bruin Linnea Mack third (53.03).
Kropp next dropped a personal best of 59.60 in the 100y breast, marking the first time the All-American had ever gone under one minute. She needed every bit of it as UCLA’s Allison’s Wine took second in 59.70. Bruin Jo Jo Winkler was third (1:02.50).
UCLA got its first win as senior Noelle Tarazona won the 200y fly in 1:55.20, leading a 1-2-3 Bruin sweep.
Wilk won the 50y free to get USC back on track, swimming to a pool record of 22.37, touching ahead of Mack’s 22.53. Trojan sophomore Evan Swenson was third (22.76).
Bruin freshman Maria Polyakova swept the springboard events, taking the 3-meter with 342.45 and the 1-meter with 316.20. USC senior Haley Ishimatsu was second on 3-meter with 297.68 and second on 1-meter with 292.65.
Wilk picked up another win following the first diving break, taking the 100y free in 48.97 for a season-best and improving by almost a second on her NCAA ‘B’ cut. UCLA claimed a tie for second as well as fourth in the race.
The Trojans picked up some much-needed points with a 1-2 finish in the 200y back as Weiss won again, claiming the 200y back in 1:53.83 with another pool record while Stewart was second in 1:54.21.
Kropp won her second event with a meet record in the 200y breast in 2:08.97, a season-best time and improving on her NCAA ‘B’ cut. Bruin Jessica Khojasteh, sister of USC junior Kevin Khojasteh, was second (2:13.65) and USC’s Brianna Weinstein was third (2:15.18).
Chenault became the fourth Trojan to post a double, winning the 500y free in a convincing wire-to-wire 4:40.70, breaking Anderson’s pool and meet record of 4:40.98. Stenkvist took second in 4:47.22.
Stewart got into the winner’s circle with a strong performance in the 100y fly in 51.25, breaking her own school (51.32) and meet record (51.43) and lowering the pool record (52.22), touching almost two seconds ahead of UCLA’s Katie Grover (53.13). USC’s Lucy Worrall and UCLA’s Tarazona tied for third (53.17).
Tosky won her second race with a 4:11.25 in the 400y IM as sophomore Maggie D’Innocenzo took second in 4:15.10.
The Trojans closed the meet with a win in the 200y free relay as the quartet of Wilk, Chenault, Swenson and Stewart won in a pool record 1:29.68.
