Resilient Lopes close WAC on positive note

Wednesday, February 26

Houston, Texas

Grand Canyon

WAC Championships

Photo by: Nathan Peters

3/1/2025 10:45:00 PM | Men's Swimming and Diving, Women's Swimming and Diving

DIVE RESULTS SWIM RESULTS

Women finish 3rd, men place 4th after final day in Houston

By: Nathan Peters

HOUSTON – Despite being plagued by sickness and adversity late in the season, the Grand Canyon swimming and diving squads ended the final day of WAC Championships with much to be proud of in Houston.

The Lopes capped off the conference meet with a series of standout performances, led by top individual scorers Paula Martinez Moreno, Maria Brunlehner, Fruzsi Macsok, Mario Perez and Alex Volkov.

The GCU women took third place in a nine-team race with 529 points, just five points behind runner-up New Mexico State. The Lopes men landed in fourth place among six teams.

Martinez, a junior, dominated the women's 200-yard butterfly, securing the WAC title with a NCAA 'B' cut time of 1 minute, 58.38 seconds, which put her third in individual points with 51 points.

Brunlehner, a senior, earned second place in the 100 freestyle with a NCAA 'B' cut time of 49.10, contributing to her fifth-place finish in individual scoring with 49 points. Macsok, also a senior, matched Brunlehner's 49-point total, highlighted by a fourth-place finish in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:14.75.

In the 200 backstroke, GCU junior Marta Guasp finished third with a time of 1:58.95, while freshman teammate Beth Young took third place in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:14.26.

On the Lopes men's side, Perez placed seventh in the 100 freestyle with a time of 44.14, earning a top-10 spot among men's individual scorers with 44 points. Volkov, a junior, finished eighth in the 200 backstroke with a time of 1:47.43, joined him in the top 10 with 42 points.

GCU sophomore Jasu Ovaskainen also made an impact, scoring 39 points, including a sixth-place finish in the 200 butterfly with a time of 1:46.79.

Lopes sophomore Guillermo Carrey finished third in the 100 freestyle with a NCAA 'B' cut time of 43.24, while junior Eli Cohen placed sixth in the same event with a time of 43.87.

In diving, GCU freshman Omar Elsayed delivered a standout performance, securing second place in the men's platform with a score of 386.60.

GCU also delivered strong relay performances, with the men's 400-yard freestyle relay team finishing second in 2:53.31, led by Volkov, Perez, Cohen and Carrey. The women's 400-yard freestyle relay team placed third in 3:21.80, with Brunlehner, senior Maria Chatzi, Martinez and junior Kailee Patters contributing to the podium finish.

After a successful WAC Championships, GCU's top scorers helped secure crucial points, showcasing strong performances across multiple events.

The senior classes of the men's and women's teams helped flip the culture from just a few years ago, and that is evident with the way the Lopes marched back from sixth place just a few days ago.

The Lopes closed out the week placing third in the women's side with 529 points while NAU claimed another title with 694.5 points. The GCU men placed fourth with 531 points while UNLV defended its title with 802 points.

Full meet results can be found here.

Day 3

The Grand Canyon swimming and diving team made positive gains in the team standings at WAC Championships on Friday night, delivering impressive results with two first-place finishes from the Lopes women.

The most exciting moment of the night came in the women's 100-yard breaststroke. GCU freshman Beth Young led the way with a WAC Championships record time of 1 minute, 0.76 seconds, securing first place and an NCAA 'B' cut. Lopes senior Raphaela Nakashima finished second at 1:01.07, also achieving a 'B' cut, while senior teammate Maria Brunlehner placed third with a time of 1:01.56.

GCU also wom the 400 medley relay with junior Marta Guasp, Nakashima, junior Paula Martinez Moreno and Brunlehner won by nearly three seconds with a time of 3:38.50.

Senior Fruzsi Macsok claimed second place in the women's 400-yard individual medley with a time of 4:18.53, while fellow senior Aleksandra Wegrzynowska followed in fourth at 4:21.55. GCU junior Elisa Corradi contributed additional points, finishing 10th in 4:25.48.

The results put the GCU women in fourth place among nine teams with 359 points behind leader Northern Arizona (531), New Mexico State (398) and California Baptist (376). In a six-team men's field, the Lopes also are fourth behind UNLV (519), California Baptist (515) and Air Force (410.5).

On the men's side, Lopes sophomore Jasu Ovaskainen placed fifth in the 100 butterfly with a time of 46.89, while junior Eli Cohen and sophomore Guillermo Carrey tied for 10th in 47.86. In the 400 individual medley, sophomore Colin Campbell finished eighth in 3:56.97, and junior Timothy Koza won the 'C' final with a time of 3:57.06.

Junior Mario Perez led the GCU men in the 200 freestyle, placing third with a time of 1:36.38, while junior Grzegorz Wanat finished 11th (1:38.50), and freshman Batu Servi placed 14th (1:39.38).

In the 100 backstroke, junior Alex Volkov took second place in 45.98, securing an NCAA 'B' cut.

In diving, senior Shiori Bak finished seventh in the women's platform event with a score of 221.60, while sophomore Lacey Neighbor placed 11th with 190.30 points. Freshman Hailey Cate Bull contributed with a 14th-place finish at 168.70.The men's 400-yard medley relay team of Volkov, Harper Houk, Ovaskainen and Carrey took second place with a time of 3:08.14.

After Friday night's events, GCU stands fourth in the women's team standings with 359 points and fourth in the men's rankings with 344 points.

Full results from Friday can be found here.

Day 2

The Grand Canyon swimming and diving team continued its strong performance at the WAC Championships on Thursday night, delivering impressive results across multiple events.

Senior Maria Brunlehner began the night with a school record in the first leg of the opening relay with a 50-yard freestyle split of 22.51 seconds.

In the women's 200-yard individual medley, senior Fruzsi Macsok secured second place with a time of 2:00.65, while Brunlehner followed closely in third at 2:01.26. Junior Marta Guasp also contributed points, finishing seventh in 2:04.17.

On the men's side, sophomore Jasu Ovaskainen placed seventh in the 200 individual medley (1:46.55), while graduate Harper Houk and junior Carter Dooling finished 13th and 16th to tack on team points.

In the men's 50-yard freestyle junior Mario Perez took third place with an NCAA 'B' cut time of 19.62 seconds, while sophomore Guillermo Carrey finished fourth at 19.66, also earning a 'B' cut. Junior Alex Volkov finished fifth (19.85), adding additional points to GCU's total.

Freshman Omar Elsayed once again led the Lopes in diving, finishing fourth in the men's 3-meter competition with a score of 356.60. Sophomore Bryce Porter placed 11th with 290.70 points.

On the women's side, sophomore Lacey Neighbor finished 12th in the 1-meter diving finals, scoring 235.40, while senior Shiori Bak placed 16th with 200.60 points.

After Thursday night's events, GCU sits in fifth in the women's team race with 165 points and fifth in the men's standings with 173 points.

Full results can be found here.

Day 1

The Grand Canyon swimming and diving team started the WAC Championships with competitive performances across multiple events on Wednesday night.

In the women's 200-yard medley relay, GCU's team of junior Marta Guasp, graduate Raphaela Nakashima, junior Paula Martinez Moreno and senior Maria Brunlehner secured second place with a time of 1 minute, 39.40 seconds, just 21-hundredths of a second shy of the winning California Baptist team time.

On the men's side, GCU finished third in the 200 medley relay, with junior Alex Volkov, graduate Harper Houk, sophomore Jasu Ovaskainen and junior Mario Perez touching the wall in 1:24.96.

In the men's 800 freestyle relay, GCU's team of junior Grzegorz Wanat, sophomore Jasu Ovaskainen, junior Eli Cohen and junior Mario Perez posted a time of 6:27.52 but was disqualified after one relay leg left early.

Perez's 50 freestyle split from the medley relay was 18.85 seconds, which ranks third all-time for the Lopes.

Freshman Omar Elsayed led the Lopes in the men's 1-meter diving competition, finishing fourth with 335.15 points, while sophomore Bryce Porter also earned points finishing 15th with 247.45 points.

In the women's 3-meter diving competition, GCU sophomore Lacey Neighbor won the consolation round to gain nine points for GCU with an event score of 266.15 points.

GCU also had strong individual performances in time trials, including many lifetime bests. Some of the personal-best marks included sophomore Joe Stephenson (48.89) and senior Chance Warriner (49.63) in the men's 100 butterfly, as well as junior Daniel Volkov in the 50 backstroke (22.21). On the women's side, Lopes junior Elisa Corradi recorded a time of 58.04 in the 100 individual medley.

Sophomore Guillermo Carrey went a career-best 21.21 in the 50 butterfly, missing a GCU school record by .15 seconds.

Lopes freshman Beth Young went 28.07 seconds in the 50 breaststroke with junior Hailey Sears touching second at 28.80, each earning CSCAA National Invitational Championships cuts. Young's time is also a team record.