The pre-championship poll accurately predicted the Lobos’ fate in the 2016 Mountain West Women’s Swimming and Diving Championships, which ended Saturday.
The Lobos were ranked seventh out of the ten teams listed in the coaches’ poll. With 248 points, that’s where UNM stood at the end of the four-day competition.
UNM head coach Kunio Kono said the Lobos broke eight or nine school records during the championship alone. So even though UNM didn’t win the title, he said couldn’t be upset.
“I’m really happy with the results,” Kono said. “We have a very young team who really stepped up.”
The poll was also right when it came to the winner.
Both Nevada and Boise State were at the top of the pre-championship poll. The Wolf Pack took the championship title and Boise State trailed behind by only 13 points.
The first day of competition, Feb. 17, was a tough one for the Lobos. UNM finished in 10th place with 24 points after a few disappointing losses.
The Lobos claimed the 24 points after placing seventh in the 800-yard freestyle relay. The team consisted of Adriana Palomino, Emily Huffer, Morgan Ginnis and Anna Lengyel.
On the second day, the Lobos moved up to the seventh spot with a total of 99.5 points.
During a pre-championship interview, Kono said he expected Palomino to deliver some top five results. He was right.
Palomino placed fifth in the 500-yard freestyle final getting 14 points for UNM.
“In every single event she swam, she scored,” Kono said. “This is one of the toughest conferences in the nation and she did an amazing job.”
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Ginnis tied for third in the 50 with a time of 22.46, a time that meets the NCAA B cut.
Her teammate, Shayla King, finished seventh with a time of 23.01, just .02 seconds short of qualifying for the B cut.
Both Ginnis and King swam the 200 free, along with Madison Burns and Kaela McKee. The group posted a time of 1:30.63, which led them to a fourth-place finish.
On the third day, UNM scored 59 points but dropped one spot to No. 8.
Freshman Konoha Shinada swam the third leg in the 400-yard medley relay, placing eighth.
Shinada went on to compete in the A final of the 100-yard butterfly and finished seventh. Abigail Wheeler raced in the B final and posted a time of 55.40, earning five points.
Later that day, Emily McGill got second place in the B final of the 400-yard individual medley, scoring seven points for the Lobos.
The Lobos regained their No. 7 spot on the final day of the championship after several successful performances.
Freshman Mareike Foester won the B final in the 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 2:15.76. She reached the NCAA’s B cut with the mark.
Palomino placed sixth in the 1650 free with a time of 16:48.11.
Wheeler qualified for the A final in the 200-yard butterfly. She scored 11 points for the Lobos with a time of 2:02.85.
The UNM 400 free relay team, consisting of Ginnis, King, Shinada and Palomino, placed seventh with a time of 3:23.48.
Coach Kono said this championship was a successful one because it showed a team that’s willing to work hard and not give up.
“All coaches including myself are very pleased with how good all the swimmers and divers performed this week,” he said. “We have an amazing team.”
Isabel Gonzalez is a sports reporter for the Daily Lobo. She can be reached at sports@dailylobo.com or on Twitter @cisabelg.
