MONTEREY PARK, Calif. – The Simon Fraser University swimming teams posted a pair of third place finishes at the La Verne Invitational, highlighted by multiple NCAA "B" cuts, three NCAA invite standards and a flurry of top five performances in the record book.
 
Team finishes
The Red Leaf men totaled 1,037 points to place third in a 14-team field, while the women scored 1,067 points to finish third out of 15 programs. Both squads collected event wins across all three days and produced significant momentum heading into the championship portion of the schedule.
 
Distance freestyle dominance
Junior Owen Nicholson (Halifax, Nova Scotia) swept distance events on the men's side, winning the 500 freestyle in 4:30.26 and the 400 individual medley in 3:57.63, with the 500 free time hitting the NCAA "B" standard. Junior Luka Tomic (Kitchener, Ontario) backed up Nicholson with a runner-up finish in the 500 free at 4:31.56, also under the NCAA "B" mark.

On the women's side, sophomore Keira Kennedy (Calgary, Alberta) produced an NCAA invite time in the 500 freestyle at 4:56.00, then returned to win the 1,650 freestyle in 16:53.53, another NCAA invite swim that improved her hold on third all-time in program history. Freshman Jessie Dreghici (Kitchener, Ontario) added a third-place finish in the 500 free in 4:56.72, the No. 5 time in the record book, and senior Delrae Vetter (Medicine Hat, Alberta) delivered an NCAA invite performance in the mile at 17:03.10.
 
Individual NCAA qualifiers and all-time swims
Freshman Evan Vellescig (Coquitlam, British Columbia) had a breakthrough meet, winning the 200 individual medley in 1:48.82 for an NCAA "B" cut and the No. 5 mark all-time, then adding a victory in the 100 breaststroke at 54.61 for another "B" cut and the No. 3 time in program history. Vellescig also clocked 1:59.17 in the 200 breaststroke to earn an NCAA "B" standard and move into the top two all-time.
 
Sophomore Lukas Buck (Squamish, British Columbia) placed second in the 100 backstroke in 48.95, the No. 3 performance in school history, and later finished second in the 200 backstroke in 1:46.42 for an NCAA "B" cut and an improvement on his own No. 5 all-time ranking. Buck also moved up to second all-time in the 50 backstroke with his leadoff split on the 200 medley relay.
 
On the women's side, Vetter was runner-up in the 200 freestyle in 1:51.77, hitting the NCAA "B" cut to cap a strong weekend that included her mile invite time. Senior Aly Whitmore (Newmarket, Ontario) placed second in the 50 freestyle in 23.57 and later achieved an NCAA "B" cut with her 200 free relay leadoff, then stormed to a win in the 100 free at 50.81 and added a runner-up finish in the 100 butterfly in 56.09.
 
Dreghici returned in the 400 individual medley to place second in 4:25.25, moving to No. 2 all-time in program history in that event. Junior Abby Andrews (St. John's, Newfoundland) and junior Laine Perry (Comox, British Columbia) also recorded NCAA "B" cuts in the 500 freestyle during the meet to bolster the women's qualifying group.
 
Freshman Hudson Frayn (Grande Prairie, Alberta) impressed in his invitational debut, taking third in the 100 breaststroke in 55.81 and adding a third-place finish in the 100 individual medley in 53.14 to climb to No. 5 all-time. Senior Robynn Reid (Pitt Meadows, British Columbia) contributed a third-place finish in the 100 breaststroke in 1:05.26, while senior Thomas Bakica (Whitehorse, Yukon) added a podium swim with third in the 200 breaststroke at 2:01.51.
 
Relay power
The men's 400 medley relay of Buck, Vellescig, Tomic and sophomore Robert Van Luven (Sunshine Coast, British Columbia) finished second in 3:19.35 to spark the relay group. The quartet of Vellescig, Buck, Nicholson and Tomic won the 800 freestyle relay in 6:44.77 on night two. Later, Vellescig, Van Luven and Buck teamed up with senior Alex Petriw (Whitehorse, Yukon) to place third in the 400 freestyle relay in 3:03.51, capping a dominant meet for the men's middle-distance and distance core.
 
On the women's side, Dreghici, Whitmore, Vetter and Andrews combined to win the 800 freestyle relay in 7:30.97, adding valuable points to the team total. In the final session, Whitmore, Dreghici, Vetter and freshman Madi Connell (Calgary, Alberta) closed the meet with a victory in the 400 freestyle relay in 3:25.17.
 
Looking ahead
With multiple NCAA invite times, a large slate of NCAA "B" standards and several new entries and moves in the all-time top five lists, SFU exits the La Verne Invitational positioned well for the upcoming conference and national championship push. The Red Leafs will be back in the water in two weeks, racing at the Logger Invitational in Tacoma, Washington.