RESULTS

CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Queens University of Charlotte men's and women's swimming teams kicked off the 2022 Bluegrass Mountain Conference Championships with dominating finishes, including nine first place finishes and three conference records. The championships opened with the preliminary runs in the morning before the finals in the evening at the Mecklenburg County Aquatic Center.
 
Head Coach Jeff Dugdale was thoroughly pleased by his teams' performances by saying, "the team effort today was outstanding. I really enjoyed seeing them show up in the morning and then committing to a strong run in the evening."
 
The Queens women kicked off the evening in the 200-yard medley relay with a first-place finish posting a 'B' cut time of 1:39.59. Vladyslava Maznytska, Danielle Melilli, Cece Mayer, and Natalie Van Noy would swim together in the event and finish victorious giving the entire Royals team the early momentum.
 
In the 1,000-yard freestyle, Sophie Lange emerged victorious setting a conference record and 'B' cut time of 9:55.79 after a battle with Wingate's Kate Agger. The two would swim next to each other for the entire race and Lange would make one final push to beat Agger by less than a second. Both swimmers beat the previous conference record which was held by Queens swimmer Sarah Reamy at 9:57.45. Amber Rydzewski and Rebecca Dany would also post excellent swims in the event earning all-conference nods.
 
The 200-yard I.M. saw three Royals finish in order at the top with 'B' cut times, including Tova Andersson, Kayla Tennant, and Caroline Lawrence. Hannah Foster and Maike Jung would round out the Royals dominant event with fifth and sixth place finishes.
 
The Royals shined in the 50-yard freestyle and 200-yard freestyle relay taking the top spot in both. In the 50-yard freestyle, Danielle Melilli, Monica Gumina, and Cece Mayer would earn all-conference nods taking the top three spots. In the relay, Queens posted a time of 1:31.40 as Danielle Melilli, Cece Mayer, Natalie Van Noy, and Monica Gumina shined.
 
The Queens men kicked off their evening breaking a conference record in the 200-yard medley relay. Finn Howard, Balazs Berecz, Matej Dusa, and Skyler Cook-Weeks notched a 'B' cut time of 1:25.76, thus breaking the previous record held by the Royals since Feb. 14, 2018.
 
In the 1,000-yard freestyle, Wingate took the top two spots, but Aidan Henry, Luke Erwee, and Mohamed Hegazy earned all-conference nods with 'B' cut times while giving the Royals a boost in the overall points due to their finish.
The 200-yard I.M. was a highlight event for the Royals as Alex Kunert earned an 'A' cut time of 1:45.68, thus automatically qualifying him for the NCAA Championships. Balazs Berecz would take second place with a 'B' cut time and Yannick Plasil and Andreas Marz rounded out the all-conference honorees in the event.
 
Similar to the Royals women, the men owned the 50-yard freestyle and 200-yard freestyle relay. In the 50-yard freestyle, Matej Dusa broke his own record which he set last year with an 'A' cut time of 19.32. Skyler Cook-Weeks would finish just behind Dusa with a time of 19.80. Finn Howard and Alexander Bauch would round out the all-conference recipients with 'B' cut times. In the 200-yard freestyle, Matej Dusa, Skyler Cook-Weeks, Finn Howard, and Alex Kunert posted a first place finish and 'B' cut time of 1:18.19. Dusa would be the first in the pool and set a new school record for the 50-freestyle off the 200-freestyle relay surging through the water at a time of 19.06
 
The Bluegrass Mountain Conference Championships will continue tomorrow, Feb. 11 at the Mecklenburg County Aquatic Center. The preliminary runs will take place at 10:00 a.m. and the finals are set for 5:00 p.m. Be sure to follow the Royals all season on Twitter and Instagram to stay up to date on all the latest news and updates. Fans are also encouraged to follow Queens Athletics on social media @QueensAthletics to stay updated on all Royals sports.