BURNABY, B.C. – The SFU Red Leafs swim teams opened their 2023-24 NCAA season in southern California Saturday, racing against the Biola Eagles. The Red Leafs men's squad dominated, winning 10 of 11 events – including both relays – to score a 116-82 victory. In the women's dual meet, SFU triumphed in six of 11 events, but fell 126-78 to Biola.
 
Junior men's swimmer Dylan Kormendy (Victoria, B.C.) won two individual races and was part of one triumphant relay to lead Canada's NCAA team. He opened the day by teaming with freshman Thomas Caruso (Lindell Beach, B.C.), sophomore Marcus Mak (Victoria, B.C.) and freshman Lochlan Rogers (Victoria, B.C.) to give SFU the win in the 400-yard medley relay in a time of three minutes 26.22 seconds. Kormendy then won the 400 individual medley in 4:12.68, nearly three seconds ahead of his nearest rival, before taking the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:08.55.
 
The Red Leafs' eight men's individual event wins were recorded by seven different swimmers, with Kormendy as the multiple winner. Head coach Demone Tissira's latest recruiting class had an impressive showing.
 
Mak (1:43.49) led a 1-2-3 finish for SFU in the 200 freestyle event, followed by junior Monyo Maina (Edmonton) and rookie Luka Tomic (Kitchener, Ont.).
 
Junior Randon Hall (Beaverton, Ore.) won the 50 freestyle in 22.48 seconds. Freshman Jordan Raume (Comox, B.C.) posted the best time in the event (22.19); his result was not counted in the team point calculations.
 
Senior Channah Yip (Hong Kong SAR, China) placed first in the 200 butterfly (1:56.25), while freshmen Rogers and Peter Morch (Lantzville, B.C.) were first and second in the 100 freestyle. Rogers got to the finish in 47.54 while Morch posted a time of 48.01.
 
Caruso – a junior national champion – won the 200 backstroke in 1:52.40, while Maina, who competed at the World Championships in the summer, was more than three seconds ahead of the field in the 500 freestyle (4:47.92).
 

Three freshmen – Tomic, Rogers, and Morch – and Hall capped off the day by earning top spot in the 400 freestyle relay (3:10.46).
 
Captain Tori Meklensek (Kitchener, Ont.) led the way for the SFU women's team on Saturday, winning a pair of individual events and one relay. She dominated the 1,000 freestyle, completing the grueling swim in 10:36.59, almost a half-minute ahead of the second-place finisher from Biola. The junior then won the 500 freestyle race by more than eight seconds (5:11.95).
 
Meklensek swam the third leg of the Red Leafs' victorious performance in the 400 free relay (3:36.87). Sophomore Abby Williams (St. John's, N.L.) opened the race, followed by rookie Kayla Houlder (Milton, Ont.). Rookie Abby Andrews (St. John's, N.L.) swam the anchor leg.
 
Houlder was probably the most superb of the Red Leafs rookies in the women's meet, winning the 50 freestyle with a time of 24.22.
 
Williams (52.90) and sophomore Aly Whitmore (Newmarket, Ont.) (54.05) were the top two finishers in the 100 free.
 
Sophomore Delrae Vetter (Medicine Hat, Alta.) won the final individual women's event of the day, the 200 breaststroke, by getting to the wall in 2:29.91, just ahead of Biola's Coco Friedley (2:30.17).
 
In addition to the freshmen mentioned above, the following first-year swimmers made their NCAA debuts for SFU Saturday.
 
Women: Laine Perry (Comox, B.C.), Nicole Petrisor (Richmond Hill, Ont.), Rachel Tong (Burnaby, B.C.)
Men: Owen Nicholson (Halifax)
 

 
The next competition for the Red Leafs will take place Oct. 6-7 in Moscow, Idaho, where SFU will have dual meets against Div. I schools Grand Canyon (Arizona) and host Idaho.

For the latest information on SFU Athletics, visit athletics.sfu.ca. You can also find us on social media at @SFU_Athletics.

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