TALLAHASSEE, Fla-- The University of the Incarnate Word men and women's swimming and diving teams fell, 293-176, to Florida State University on Thursday at the Morcom Aquatic Center. This was the second of three away meets in this week's schedule for the Cardinals, and UIW gained valuable experience against the Seminoles squads.
 
MEET RESULTS
Thursday's competition began with the women's 200 Medley relay. The A squad relay consisting of Natasha Fung, Alexandra Farmer, Cassandra Phillips and Kaylee Brawner finished fifth with a time of 1:47.50. For the men, UIW's top-ranked relay team of Aaron Moran, Oleksandr Karpenko, Bryce Kuchan and Carter Wallace finished fourth with a time of 1:33.96.
 
Hannah Rowley has been grinding this season in distance work and held tough with the Seminoles in the women's 1,000 Freestyle, taking third in the heat with a time of 10:36.07. Rowley later snagged second in the women's 500 Freestyle with a time of 5:14.08. Peyton Roemer and Kara Neel came in right behind Rowley for the event, finishing in respective times of 5:16.76 and 5:24.35. Also showing out for the Cardinals in distance events, Oscar Cardenas Reyes touched second in the men's 1,000, finishing in a strong time of 9:50.63. In the men's 500 Freestyle, it was Hector Ruvalcaba Cruz who owned first place with a quick time of 4:34.66. Cardenas Reyes came in behind to take second with a time of 4:46.17.
 
Roemer continued on in the meet day to claim second in the women's 200 IM, coming back with a fiery last split of the race to finish in 2:12.82. H. Ruvalcaba Cruz soared in the men's 200 IM, taking an easy first place standing with a finals time of 1:51.11.
 
Freshman Hailey Miller took fourth place in the women's 200 Freestyle, finishing just out of podium territory with a time of 1:56.14. On the men's side, Beau Fusilier took top ranks, finishing the 200 with a finals time of 1:41.44, only to be followed closely behind by teammate Leonardo Sanchez in third, going 1:41.53. Sanchez held his own and narrowly was edged out in the men's 100 Freestyle to place second with a finals time of 46.67. C. Wallace came in right after to place third in 46.97.
 
Cardinals women topped the competition in the 50 Freestyle finals, with Brawner soaring to take first with a finishing time of 24.65. Zlata Demchenko took second close behind to finish in a time of 24.77. Demchenko later went on to finish second in the women's 100 Freestyle with a time of 54.37. The men's 50 Freestyle saw Christopher Lestage take third for the Cardinals behind Florida State swimmers, finishing in a finals time of 21.62.
 
Cardinals-standout Cassandra Phillips took first in the women's 100 Butterfly, and cut time from her listed seed time, to finish in 56.54. The men's top finisher for the 100 Butterfly was Bryce Kuchan, who came out with a time of 50.84. 
 
Backstroker Natasha Fung fought in the women's 100 Backstroke event, placing second in the competition with a time of 59.20. Miller and Devon Dockery finished after their teammate, coming in at 1:00.44 and 1:055.63, respectively. On the men's side, Moran also took second for the Cardinals, finishing in 51.79.
 
Silver was earned for the men and women in the 100 Breaststroke, with Natalia Macias Ruiz coming in just after a Seminole with a time of 1:10.06, and Oleksandr Karpenko finishing for the men with a time of 57.92.
 
In Thursday's diving schedule, the Cardinals saw Ana Lucia Garza take fifth in women's 1M diving to earn 205.43 points, while Dawson Martinez racked up 284.10 points on 1M for the men. Lucia Garza again took fifth in 3M competition with 232.43 points, but it was Timothy Newton who topped UIW's roster for the men on the scoreboard, finishing with 271.20 points.
 
The day concluded at the Marcom Aquatic Center with the men's and women's 200 Freestyle relay. The women's squad of Phillips, Brawner, Demchenko and Magda Vega Vidal took second in the event with a time of 1:39.04. For the men, UIW also took second, with Sanchez, Christopher Lestage, Fusilier and Moran coming in at 1:26.17.
 
UP NEXT
The Cardinal men's and women's teams return to Louisiana to face the Tigers of Louisiana State University on Jan. 12. Start time for the meet is TBD.
 
FOLLOW ALONG
For the most up-to-date information on UIW Athletics, visit uiwcardinals.com, follow the Cardinals on Twitter @UIWAthletics and like UIW Athletics on Facebook at UIW Athletics.