2021 PCSC Championships Gets Underway
IRVINE, Calif. – The 2021 PCSC Championship meet got underway on Wednesday morning, welcoming all conference teams to the pool deck of William Woollett Aquatics Center.
All athletes fought through tough times all season long due to the COVID-19 pandemic, dealing with quarantine, social distancing, many testings, and the itch to get back into the pool. But after months of preparation, the teams came together to give it their final push for the chance for a conference title.
Women's Day One Results | Women's Team Scores
The women hit the pool first, with Pepperdine finishing with a conference top time of 1:35.19 in the 200 Free Relay, led by Sammie Slater, McKenzie Kelly, Jasmine Williams, and Jenna Sanchez.
Biola's Kolya Vos set a new personal best of 5:01.63 in the 500 Free while Riley Smith from Azusa Pacific was close behind with a time of 5:02.15. The top four finishers each finished ahead of the season's top times leading up into the championships.
With a time of 2:05.94, Pepperdine's Emily Morton secured the teams second top finish, setting another season-high in the 200 IM. Biola's swimmers also boosted it's team score from this event, with four Eagles finishing in the top five.
In the 50 Free, Biola's Meghan Tolman improved her previous time back in February to take the title with a time of 23.80 followed by Pepperdine's Jenna Sanchez (23.95) and McKenzie Kelly (24.15) to round out the top three.
Pepperdine and Biola each set PCSC season-highs for the 400 Medley Relay, consisting of Waves' quartet of Jasmine Williams, Emily Morton, Haley Bergthold, and Sammie Slater (3:50.67) and the Eagles team of Kalyn Chang, Grace Kling, Katelyn Harper, and Kolya Vos (3:52.50).
Azusa Pacific led the way on the diving boards, securing the top three scores in the 3 Meter. Amy Crayne repeats as a PCSC champion with a score of 276.00, followed by fellow Cougars McKenna Webster (251.95) and Melia Stout (240.55).
Rounding out day one for the women, Biola leads all teams with 485 points, with Pepperdine following right behind with 477. Azusa Pacific, Loyola Marymount, and Concordia round out the top five.
Men's Day One Results | Men's Team Scores
Biola's relay team of Jake Michelsen, Tanner Smith, Jonas Huckabay, and Patrick Waggoner secured the first PCSC title on the men's side on day one with a new season-high time of 1:23.53 in the 200 Freestyle Relay. Fresno Pacific's Iskender Baslakov, Trevor Riley, Kiril Baron, and Alex Ivakin finished right behind also improving their best with a finish of 1:23.89.
Reigning PCSC Male Athlete of the Year Kyle Benjamin of Concordia topped the standings in the Men's 500 Free with a time of 4:29.69. His teammate Taylor Steffen secured second with a 4:33.88 finish and Biola's Gabe Weber scored on a 4:40.72 time.
In the 200 IM, Patrick Waggoner earned another PCSC title for Biola with a 1:52.36 finish, a three second margin ahead of teammate Nathan Schwantes. Fresno Pacific's Dylan Sewell was named third with a 1:55.89 end.
The first title for Fresno Pacific went to Iskender Baslakov, who's 20.68 time in the 50 Free edged out Simpson's Chadd Maurer (20.84) and FPU's Alex Ivankin (20.88).
Fresno Pacific earned another title with Hunter Cole boosting his season-best on the 1 Meter Dive with a 222.35 score.
Rounding out the day, the Sunbird's finished strong, earning their third straight victory in the 400 Medlay Relay. Iskender Baslakov, Dylan Sewell, Kiril Baron, and Alex Ivakin swam a time of 3:39.66, beating their previous best by over nine seconds.
Teams will return to the pool on Thursday, with the women starting at 9:00 a.m. followed by the men at 12:00 p.m. Check out the Championship page for details of Day Two of the 2021 PCSC Championships.
Team Recaps
