Texas vs. Texas A&M

COLLEGE STATION, Texas, November 5. TEXAS (4-0, 1-0 Big 12) picked up three wins from junior Karlee Bispo and two apiece from junior Leah Gingrich and sophomore Laura Sogar in a 163-137 victory over Texas A&M (1-1, 0-1 Big 12) Friday evening in the State Farm Lone Star Showdown.

UT collects one point in the State Farm Lone Star Showdown standings and now holds a 3.5-1.0 lead in the season-long, all-sports series between the two schools. It marks the Longhorns’ third consecutive dual-meet win over the Aggies and UT’s second straight win in College Station.

Texas opened the evening with its first of two relay wins on the night, as UT posted a winning mark of 1 minute, 40.39 seconds in the 200-yard medley relay. Freshman Lily Moldenhauer led off in 24.98 on the backstroke before sophomore Bethany Adams split 27.98 on the breaststroke leg. Sophomore Kelsey Amundsen picked up the butterfly in 24.76 before Bispo anchored the relay to victory in 22.67. UT’s “B” relay took third place well ahead of Texas A&M’s “B’ relay.

The 1000 freestyle featured two of the Big 12 Conference’s top middle-distance swimmers in Texas’ Gingrich and Texas A&M’s Maureen McLaine. Gingrich held on for the win at 9:53.99 while McLaine took second in 9:54.52. Bispo followed with her first individual win of the night, as she claimed the 200 freestyle in 1:47.57, well under the NCAA provisional-qualifying standard. Freshman Samantha Tucker took fourth in 1:49.16, also good for a NCAA “B” cut.

Moldenhauer followed with a victory in the 100 backstroke in 54.05 for another NCAA “B” cut. Sophomore Jessica Guro took third in 55.47, and freshman Alex Hooper placed fifth at 55.92. UT’s Sogar notched her first of two breaststroke victories in the next event, as she claimed the 100 breaststroke in 1:01.25 for another NCAA provisional-qualifying mark. Gingrich and freshman Ellen Lobb teamed up to gather valuable points in the 200 butterfly with their second and third-place finishes. Gingrich claimed second place in 1:57.27 for a NCAA “B” cut, while Lobb took third in 2:00.99.
Bispo registered her second win of the evening in the next event, the 50 freestyle, where she edged Texas A&M’s Maria Sommer in 23.06. Sommer took second at 23.13. Sophomore Maren Taylor led the Texas diving contingent in the one-meter event, where she placed third with 296.30 points. Redshirt sophomore Shelby Cullinan placed fourth with 280.75 points.

Amundsen led a one-two Texas finish in the 100 freestyle with a winning mark of 50.28, just off of the NCAA provisional-qualifying standard of 50.23. Moldenhauer placed second in 50.82, and UT’s Adams placed fourth in 50.98. UT junior Katie Riefenstahl led the Horns with a second-place finish in the 200 backstroke in 1:59.84. Guro placed fourth at 2:01.15.

Sogar, ranked No. 1 nationally in the 200 breaststroke heading into the weekend, claimed an easy win in the event Friday evening in 2:11.41. Freshman Catherine Wagner placed fifth in 2:18.43. Gingrich held off Texas A&M’s Sarah Henry in the 500 freestyle and took the win in 4:48.92, good for another NCAA “B” cut. Henry took second in 4:49.20, and UT’s Tucker placed fourth at 4:55.73.

Amundsen paced the Horns in the 100 butterfly by taking third in 55.14. Lobb added a fourth-place finish in 55.58. Taylor led the Texas divers once more in the three-meter event, where she took third with 342.95 points. Cullinan placed fourth with 297.15 points.

Bispo stretched the Texas lead with her third victory of the night, as she captured the 200 individual medley in 2:00.54. Sogar added a third-place finish in 2:03.33. The Longhorns closed out the evening with a convincing win in the 400 freestyle relay, where Riefenstahl, Adams, Amundsen and Tucker finished with a NCAA “B” cut of 3:21.20. Amundsen posted the relay’s top split with a 49.77 on the third leg.

Texas wraps up fall competition next month (Dec. 2-4) when it hosts the annual Texas Invitational at UT’s Lee and Joe Jamail Texas Swimming Center.

The above article is a press release submitted to Swimming World Magazine. It has been posted in its entirety without editing. Swimming World offers all outlets the chance to reach our audience by contacting us at Newsmaster@swimmingworldmagazine.com. However, Swimming World reserves the right to choose what material is posted.

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