Wheeling, W. Va. - After five long month of training and competitng, Day one of the 2025 Mountain East Conference (MEC)/Great Midwest Athletic Conference (GMAC) Swimming & Diving Championships kicked off Wednesday from the C.T. Brannin Natatorium. The Wheeling University Women's Swimming team had two swimmers qualify for the final in their individual events, and ended day one action sitting fifth overall and second amongst their MEC competition. The highlight would come in the final relay event of the day, when the Cardinals crowned their first individual champion of the four day championship event.
It would be the final swim of the night in the 200-Yard Freestyle Relay as the team of Lydie Sprecher, Jade Miller, Grace Moorley, and Sofia Castillo took the pool. The foursome would put together a strong showing, swimming a time of 1:39.83 and finished third overall in the field. However, among MEC teams, it would be the top time in the pool, beating Frostburg State by .19 seconds as they claimed the MEC Championship in the event. It was the first MEC Relay Championship for the program, as the foursome ended day one on a high note. The other relay event would kick-off the day in the 200-Yard Medley Relay, where Jade Miller, Sprecher, Sofia Gonzalez Bernal, and Sofia Castillo competed. The foursome would take fifth overall in the event, swimming a time of 1:51.67, and earned Second Team All-MEC honors for their effort.
Along with the relay events, the Cardinals had two individual swimmers take on final events in Jade Miller and Lydie Sprecher. Miller was up first, competing in the 200-Yard Individual Medley, where she qualified for the B Final after the morning swims. She would compete against a mix of MEC and GMAC competition, and finished 15th overall with a time of 2:14.48. It was enough to earn her first All-MEC honor of the event, winning Honorable Mention honors, finishing behind Frostburg State's Taylor Emrich and Kendall Hooper. The other individual final swim came in the Women's 50-Yard Freestyle with Lydie Sprecher competing in the B Final of the event. Sprecher would finish 12th overall with a time of 24.96, and would take fourth among the MEC competition in the event. For Sprecher, it was her first collegiate championship event and she got her week started strong.
The other top finisher for the Cardinals on the day was Gabby Baiano, who brought home the third All-MEC honor of the day. She would earn Honorable Mention All-MEC honors in the 1000-Yard Freestyle, where she swam a time of 10:42.17. It brought the Cardinal's All-MEC count to three after day one as they look to continue pushing forward throughout the week.
Day two of the 2025 MEC/GMAC Championships is scheduled for Thursday, February 13th, with preliminary swims beginning at 10 AM.
