by David J. Chavez
Daily Lobo
UNM swimming head coach Tracy Ljone isn't that disappointed when her team doesn't come in first place.
But that's only if it comes in second, like it did for the second week in a row at its home meet Thursday.
"Last week (at Colorado State), we did really good, and everything just carried over into this week, and they got even faster today," Ljone said. "The girls went out, competed and fought for every single place in the race."
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The Lobos dropped New Mexico State and Northern Arizona but fell to Brigham Young at the Seidler Natatorium.
UNM started with swimmers Ashley Grisdale, Andrea Zarins, Tori Clarridge and Jenna Syverson placing second in the 200-yard medley relay.
Junior diver Carrie Quinn placed first in the three-meter springboard with a final score of 273.25. In the one-meter dive, Quinn took fourth with a score of 238.95.
Quinn said she got overexcited after her first win and made some mistakes on her second dive.
"Today, I knew I had to show up, go hard and not hold back," she said. "I felt really good about my three-meter dive. I was really strong, and I went for it. In the one-meter, I was too pumped up off my win and lost my concentration."
Clarridge drowned the competition in the 100-yard backstroke for a first-place finish with a time of 58.03. Syverson also swam her way to a first-place finish in the 50-yard freestyle in a time of 24.43.
Clarridge said the team is coming together, and the swimmers and divers are keeping one another motivated.
"I swam better than last week, so I just keep improving, and hopefully, we can keep up our winning ways," she said. "We're really working well as a team and bonding, and it's just helping us all the way through the meets."
Grisdale took third in the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 2:08.27. Zarins also finished third in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:12.89.
The Lobos went on to finish strong with a second place in the 400-yard free relay in 3:34.29.
Head diving coach Abel Sanchez said the team needs to keep building momentum.
"They did exceptionally well for it being this early in the season," Sanchez said. "It will take time and a few more meets to get us ready for conference."
