ALBUQUERQUE, N.M. – NM State Swimming and Diving returns to action for its final meet of the 2024-25 regular season as they travel to Albuquerque to take on in-state rival New Mexico at the Armond H. Seidler Natatorium on Saturday afternoon.

The Aggies will enter the meet with an impressive 7-1 record with their seven victories representing the highest win total since a 10-win season during the 2008-09 campaign. This will be the first time the Aggie swimmers are in action since their Senior Day meet against Grand Canyon on Jan. 11 when they defeated the Lopes 173-127. This victory was led by the efforts of Naomi Slee who was named WAC Swimmer of the Week.

Last season, the Aggies defeated the Lobos by a dominant score of 198-93 as they amassed 14 first-place finishes and 38 podium finishes across 16 events in its final home meet of the season.

The first event on Saturday is slated to begin at 12:15 when the divers will compete in the 3-meter dive. This will be followed by the 200 medley relay, 1000 free, 200 free, 100 back, 100 breast, 200 fly, 50 free, 1-meter dive, 100 free, 200 back, 200 breast, 500 free, 100 fly, 200 IM and 200 free relay before concluding with an exhibition 200 back.

MEET NINE

NM State at New Mexico
Saturday, Feb. 8 | Events begin at Noon MT
Seidler Natatorium
Redondo Ct. NE | Albuquerque, N.M. 87106
Watch Live: Mountain West Network

LAST TIME OUT | NM State (173) vs. Grand Canyon (127)

·      The Crimson & White took the crown in 10 of 16 events on the day, landing on 28 of the 48 possible podium spots. Naomi Slee (3), Emily Dobbins (2), Dijana Mazumdar, Faye McDonagh and Katie Rink (2) all earned multiple first-place finishes, including the final event of the day.

·      Katie Rink and Estel Galo went 1-2 in the second event of the day; the 1,000 free. The former posted an even better mark than last time out at Utah Tech, clearing the competition by 11.95 seconds (10:20.26).

·      Naomi Slee earned her first of three victories on the day with a 1:50.98 showing in the 200 free, while Dreamer Kowatch claimed third place by finishing in 1:53.73.

·      In the quickest sprint of the day, Emily Dobbins and Dijana Mazumdar took the top two spots in the 50 free. Dobbins edged out the two-time WAC Swimmer of the Week by reaching the wall in 23.44 seconds. Mazumdar, the true freshman, was right on Dobbins' heels, finishing four hundredths of a second later (23.48).

·      Katie Rink ran away with the 500 free. The Arizona native cleared the competition by 6.99 seconds, leading the pack at 5:01.17. Estel Galo finished less than a second out of second place, taking third at 5:08.80.

·      Faye McDonagh then made her first splash of the day in the 100 fly, pacing the pool at 55.89, just two hundredths of a second ahead of Grand Canyon. Ellen Osthelder wrapped up the last spot on the podium at 56.75, solidifying another three points for her squad.

·      Diving stayed back home on campus at NM State, also taking command of the scoreboard. Mira Tinani took the 1M title with 245.33 points across six dives, while Peytton Moore (219.15) and Addison Pastiak (215.10) closed out a top four that included three Aggies. 

·      In the 3M dive, Grand Canyon's Lacey Neighbor came out on top with 269.70 points, but NM State's Tinani, Pastiak and Moore finished 2-3-4, respectively. The Aggies took down Grand Canyon by a final score of 173-127, avenging last season's defeat in Phoenix.

QUOTABLE | HEAD COACH RICK PRATT

"As we near the end of our season, it is always motivating and exciting to end with our dual versus UNM. They are well coached and improved and will be a great test for us. We've been through a lot this season and sacrificed much. We are hoping to celebrate our hard work by competing not just for ourselves but for all aggies against our rivals. UNM will bring out our best, and to be successful we must remain focused and take one event at a time."
 

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