SFU Women's Swimming delivered a commanding performance in Fairbanks, sweeping the University of Alaska Fairbanks with scores of 108–59 on Friday and 100–48 on Saturday to close out an unbeaten weekend.
On the opening night, senior
Aly Whitmore of Newmarket, Ontario, set the tone with victories in the 200 freestyle, clocking 1:53.41, and the 50 freestyle in 24.08. Junior
Abby Andrews from St. John's, Newfoundland, led a podium sweep in the 1000 freestyle with a winning time of 10:32.39, followed closely by
Laine Perry of Comox, British Columbia, in 10:34.15 and freshman Jessie Dreghici of Kitchener, Ontario, in 10:35.44.
Maggie Armstrong of Las Vegas, Nevada, claimed the 100 backstroke in 1:01.25, with senior
Ella Magnussen of Oslo, Norway, finishing second.
In the 100 breaststroke, senior
Robynn Reid of Maple Ridge, British Columbia, posted a strong 1:05.92 to lead a 1–2–3 finish for SFU, with freshmen Madi Connell of Calgary, Alberta, and
Priya Thomas of Red Deer, Alberta, rounding out the top three. Dreghici added a runner-up finish in the 400 individual medley with a time of 4:29.18, narrowly missing an NCAA B-cut, and later anchored the winning 400 freestyle relay alongside Perry,
Nicole Petrisor of Richmond Hill, Ontario, and senior
Delrae Vetter of Medicine Hat, Alberta, in 3:34.30.
The momentum carried into day two as Whitmore continued her dominance, winning the 100 freestyle in 52.87 and the 100 butterfly in a season-best 57.79. Connell secured second in the 100 free, while junior Chloe McAra of Montreal, Quebec, took second in the 100 fly. Perry led another podium sweep in the 500 freestyle with a time of 5:07.43, followed by Dreghici and Andrews. Andrews then added a victory in the 200 backstroke with a season-best 2:07.93, while Perry finished third in the same event.
In the breaststroke group, Thomas posted a season-best 2:25.44 for second in the 200 breaststroke, with Vetter in third. Vetter also earned second in the 200 individual medley with a time of 2:11.53. The meet concluded with a record-breaking performance in the 800 freestyle relay, as Vetter, Andrews, Perry, and Dreghici combined for a time of 7:42.28 to break the Patty Pool record previously set by SFU in 2013.
The team now turns their attention to their next challenge, traveling to Phoenix for a two-day meet against Grand Canyon University from November 7–8.
