GRAND JUNCTION, Colo. – After a tough 48 hours of travel setbacks, the Bison finally made it to the 2021 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Championships and were able to take the pool for the first day of competition. Given the circumstances, OBU performed very well, earning six top-three finishes and two new NCAA qualifying marks. Both the men's and women's teams finished day one in third place with overall team scores of 146 and 128.50, respectively.
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On the men's side,
William Newman placed third in the 200 yard IM with a time of 1:52.03. This gave Newman an NCAA "B" cut, needing a time of 1:52.49 to qualify. Estevao Hornos placed second in the 50 yard freestyle with a time of 20.05 He was only 0.04Â seconds away from the first-place swimmer, Ben Sampson of Colorado Mesa. The men's 200 yard medley relay team consisting of
Ian Wiley,
Tristan Villa, Hornos, and Newman placed third with a time of 1:31.46.
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Megan Gallagher of the women's team took second in the 50 yard freestyle with a time of 23.78 and giving her an NCAA "B" cut. The women's 200 yard medley relay team consisting of
Camila Alduenda,
Anna Tindall,
Jamie Edwards, and
Julie Day placed second with a time of 1:46.95. OBU also claimed second in the 200 yard freestyle relay with Gallagher, Alduenda, Edwards, and Day posting a time of 1:34.93.
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"We had some tough competition day one," said OBU head coach
Matt Hood. "The team definitely started getting better as the meet went on and really turned it up tonight at finals. It was great to see new 'B'Â cuts for Newman in the 200 IM and Gallagher in the 50 freestyle. We're looking forward to continuing to get faster tomorrow."
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The RMAC Championships continue on Thursday, Feb. 18, with preliminary races set for 9 a.m. local time (10 a.m. CT). Day two events include the 100 yard fly, 400 yard IM, 200 yard freestyle, one meter diving, and the 400 yard medley relay.
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