PRINCETON, N.J. – This past weekend, the Columbia women’s swimming and diving team made waves at the Big Al Invitational in New Jersey. Their impressive performance over three days culminated in a third-place finish, racking up a total of 685.50 points. The Penn team narrowly secured first place with 1,072 points, while Princeton edged Columbia with a total of 1,004 points in their head-to-head matchup.
Head Coach Diana Caskey commented on the experience, stating, “We saw many solid swims and it served as a great reminder of the intricacies of a three-day trials and finals competition. It’s all about building mental and physical muscle memory. It’s excellent preparation for our championship season in late February!”
DAY ONE
The competition kicked off with the 200 freestyle relay team claiming second place. The team, consisting of Emily MacDonald, Sally Ma, Isabel Lee, and Audrey Wolk, recorded a time of 1:31.79.
In the individual events, Lindsay Orringer delivered a strong performance, finishing fourth in the 500 freestyle with a time of 4:49.27, closely followed by Mia Avansino, who finished seventh at 4:55.31.
MacDonald continued her success in the sprint category, earning a second-place finish in the 50 freestyle with a time of 22.63. Allison Martin also shined, placing fifth in the 200 individual medley with a time of 2:01.05.
DAY TWO
On day two, Ashley Hu stole the spotlight, winning the 100 breaststroke with an impressive time of 1:01.58. Teammate Natalia Diaz followed closely behind, securing third place with a time of 1:03.24.
In the 400 individual medley, Martin placed eighth with a finishing time of 4:21.65, while Hutton Saunders took fifth in the 200 freestyle at 1:49.61.
DAY THREE
Orringer kicked off the final day by securing fourth place in the 1650 freestyle with a time of 16:39.53. Meanwhile, Riley Pujadas finished eighth in the 200 backstroke at 2:01.35. Sally Ma delivered a strong performance, placing fifth in the 100 freestyle with a time of 50.24, followed by Hu again impressing with a third-place finish in the 200 breaststroke at 2:15.11. Additionally, Martin claimed third in the 200 butterfly, clocking in at 2:00.67.
DIVE COMPETITION
On the diving boards, Macy Pine led the charge for the Columbia divers, finishing sixth in the 3m finals on day one with a score of 253.15. The following day, Pine again excelled in the 1m finals, securing sixth place with a score of 243.90, while teammate Chloe Leung placed ninth with 229.25. On the final day, Leung showcased her skills in the platform dive, achieving third place with a score of 211.00 points.
“Chloe exceeded our expectations today and scored valuable team points,” expressed Head Diving Coach Scott Donie. “I am super proud of her.”
LOOKING AHEAD
After this competitive weekend, the Lions will take a break for the holiday season before returning to the pool on January 14 against Brown at Uris Natatorium, which will also serve as Senior Day.
For the latest updates on the Columbia women’s swimming and diving program, follow @CULionsWSD and @CULionsDiving on Instagram and Twitter, and visit GoColumbiaLions.com.
