LONG BEACH, CALIF. – NM State competed at the MPSF Open Water Championships on Saturday, sending five Aggies to the Pacific Coast for a distance-oriented event. The Aggies ended the day with 62 points, earning a sixth-place finish out of 17 teams at the meet. 
 
The morning began with the 5K in Marine Stadium at 10:30 local time. Estel Galo led the way for NM State, picking up an eighth-place finish with a time of 1:03:40. The senior racked up 19 points for her squad, coming in behind four Rice Owls and an individual apiece from Northern Colorado and Washington State. 
 
Katie Rink was the only other Aggie to earn points for NM State in the event. The senior crossed the finish line in 1:05:12, earning a 17^th-place finish out of the 76 competitors. Rink picked up nine points for her squad, granting the Aggies a total of 28 in the 5K.
 
Natalia Florian (1:10:55) was the next Aggie to finish, coming in 52^nd as a true freshman. Bella Schultz (1:14:35) and Jamie Puhalski (1:16:11) also finished 67^th and 70^th, respectively. 
 
Later in the afternoon, the team competed in the 4x500 relay to wrap up the day. Posting a time of 27:04.96, NM State finished ninth out of 25 squads, picking up 34 points as a unit. 
 
UP NEXT
The Aggies will return to action a week from now, doing so from the comfort of their home pool in Las Cruces. The Crimson & White will square off against Northern Colorado in a conference dual meet on Saturday, Oct. 18. The swimmers will first hit the NM State Swimming & Diving Complex pool at 10:00 AM.
 
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