CHARLOTTE, N.C. – The Queens University of Charlotte swimming programs celebrated Senior Day in dominant fashion on Friday afternoon, sweeping Gardner-Webb on both sides as the women earned a 182.5–70.5 victory and the men secured a 199–61 win inside the Levine Aquatic Center.

Prior to competition, Queens honored its senior class of Callen Bartone, Eli Brinkman, AJ Fair, Caden Fritz, Jonathan Henschel, Matt Labianco, Daniel Meszaros, Matt Shanahan, Levani Tutovani, Keegan McKenney, Juan Gonzalez, Matthew Duren, Bethany Glen, Annika Huber, Ayvah Johnson, Sabina Kupcova, Daryna Maznytska, and Cornelia Almqvist, recognizing their contributions to the program.

The meet opened with the 200-yard medley relays, where both Royals squads set the tone early. The women's A relay of Abigail Zboran, Annika Huber, Maddie Foster, and Maren Patterson captured first place with a time of 1:40.04. The men followed with an event win as the A relay of Pablo Ortega Navarro, Callen Bartone, Emil Harlem, and Nien Levy touched in 1:25.66.

Queens showcased its strength in the distance freestyle events. Sarah Leonie Tenzer claimed the women's 1650-yard freestyle title with a time of 16:56.58, while Ellie Porter added a third-place finish (18:20.30). On the men's side, Akos Horvath finished second in the 1650-yard freestyle (15:43.01).

Sprint freestyle races continued the momentum. In the women's 200-yard freestyle, Abigail Zboran secured the victory in 1:51.97. The men swept the podium in the 200-yard freestyle as Daniel Meszaros won the event (1:37.84), TJ Spokas finished second (1:38.92), and Lance Young placed third (1:40.27).

Backstroke events featured multiple Royals atop the leaderboard. Haley Ross earned the women's 100-yard backstroke victory (55.58), followed by Bianca Wettel in second (57.32). The men claimed multiple podium finishes in the 100-yard backstroke as Caden Fritz won the race in 48.04 and Pablo Ortega Navarro placed second (48.39).

Breaststroke races produced more senior-day highlights. Annika Huber captured first place in the women's 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:02.12, while Libby Livesay finished second (1:03.43). In the men's 100-yard breaststroke, Matheus Przewalla earned the win (54.25), followed closely by senior Callen Bartone in second (54.31).

Butterfly events saw strong finishes from the Royals. Abigail Zboran won the women's 200-yard butterfly (2:04.74), while Annie Choate added a third-place finish (2:10.98). On the men's side, Nikola Karaivanov claimed first place in the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1:48.07.

The individual portion of the meet closed with standout IM swims. Sabina Kupcova earned the victory in the women's 200-yard IM (2:02.06). The men were led by Matheus Przewalla, who captured first place in the 200-yard IM with a time of 1:48.64.

Queens capped Senior Day with relay victories to close the meet. The women's 200-yard freestyle relay of Maren Patterson, Abigail Zboran, Sophia Pfannstiel, and Libby Livesay earned first place in 1:33.48. The men closed the afternoon with a win in the 200-yard freestyle relay as Stamatis Paleocrassas, Pablo Ortega Navarro, Daniel Meszaros, and Nien Levy touched in 1:19.38.

"A huge thank you to Gardner-Webb and our parents and friends for pivoting to make sure we could send our seniors out the Royal Way in our last home meet," Director of Swimming Jeff Dugdale said. "The seniors all did well and shined as they should on Senior Day.  Thank you Seniors for choosing queens when you all had so many good choices. We notice the leaders you have become and appreciate your commitment to be the best version of yourself when you exit. I love how you are global minded, professionally adept, civically engaged and decisive in your decision making!  Go Royals."

UP NEXT
Queens will prepare for the 2026 ASUN Championships held in Orlando, Fla. beginning on Feb. 18.

SOCIAL MEDIA
Be sure to follow the Royals men's and women's swimming and diving teams on Instagram and Twitter/X to stay up to date on all the latest news surrounding the team. Fans are also encouraged to follow Queens Athletics to stay updated on all the Royals sports teams in action by searching @QueensAthletics on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and TikTok.