FGCU S&D vs Stony Brook Recap

 The FGCU swimming & diving team earned over a 100-point margin of victory in its dual against Stony Brook on Saturday afternoon at the FGCU Aquatics Complex. The Eagles (8-5-1, 4-1 CCSA) defeated the SeaWolves by a score of 178-65 through 13 events.

Senior Cassidy Fry and freshman Julia Rodriguez were the highest-scoring individual swimmers of the day, combining for 31 total points. Fry earned first-place finishes in both the 100- and 50-yard freestyle events, while Rodriguez touched the wall first in the 500 Free and placed second in the 200 IM.

The Eagles were also boosted by another strong performance by freshman diver Reese Wakefield, who swept the 1m and 3m boards for the second-straight week. Wakefield outscored opponents by almost a combined total of 50 points through both events.

"It was a great day," head coach Dave Rollins said. "Some of the athletes got another shot at the events they competed in a week ago, but most of them had the chance to swim something completely different. When it comes to swimming different events, you never know what to expect, but they did a great job. The support is always there and they're always cheering each other on. It's great that we have the strength to be flexible in our lineup. For instance, Julia (Rodriguez) swam the 500 Free, which is not necessarily in her wheel house, but for she came out and won the event which was really neat."

Including Fry and Rodriguez, seven different Eagles earned first-place finishes in the meet against Stony Brook (4-5, 0-1 America East). Both senior Elizabeth White and freshman Claire McAtee tallied 12 points apiece, as they each contributed first and third-place finishes. White won the 100 Breast and finished third in the mile, while McAtee claimed the 100 Back and finished third in the 50 Free.

Freshman Hannah VanDress, sophomore Wiktoria Czarnecka and junior Petra Halmai added top finishes for the Green and Blue, as well. VanDress finished first in the mile, Czarnecka won the 100 Fly and Halmai was triumphant in the 200 Free.

In addition to individual success, the Eagles picked up a pair of wins in both relay events. The team of freshman Lucija Sulenta, Halmai, Rodriguez and freshman Kaja Reinhardt won the 400-yard medley relay by over six seconds to open up the meet. The group of sophomore Joely Merriman, Sulenta, Czarnecka and Halmai finished the day with a victory in the 200-yard freestyle relay.

Of today's 13 events, the Eagles finished first in all but the 200 IM, where Stony Brook's Reagan McDonald edged Rodriguez by just 0.01 seconds.

The meet against the SeaWolves marked the second-to-last time that the Green and Blue will compete at the FGCU Aquatics Complex this season. The team's last home meet will be held on Saturday, Jan. 25 and will feature a matchup against the FIU Panthers. Prior to the competition, Rollins and his staff will honor the six members of this year's graduating class.

Before the meet against the Panthers, the Eagles are set to hit the road for back-to-back clashes with FAU (Jan. 17) and Miami (Jan. 18). Competition against the Owls is slated for a 5 p.m. start time at the FAU Aquatic Center. The following day, FGCU will face off against the Hurricanes at Noon at the Norman Whitten Pool.