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Western Athletic Conference

Women's Swim & Dive

`Runner Women Hit the Road for Fresno Dual

Bakersfield, Calif. – The CSU Bakersfield women's swimming and diving team returns to action this weekend, with a Saturday dual meet at Fresno State scheduled to begin at 12:00 p.m. The Roadrunners are back in action as a team for the first-time since competing in the Pepperdine Winter Invitational and will be looking to avenge last season's head-to-head loss to the Bulldogs.  
 
"Fresno State meets are always tough to predict," said CSUB Director of Swimming Chris Hansen. "You never really know who will have the edge until you get to the pool and swim your races."
 
Bakersfield fell 155.5-125.5 in last season's meeting at the Hillman Aquatic Center. The `Runners dominated the freestyle and butterfly events, winning all but the 500 free, including three wins from Autumn D'Arcy in the 50 Free, the 100 Free and the 100 Fly.
 
Maddie Cosgrove added a pair of wins, touching the wall first in both the 200 Free and 200 Fly, while the team's 400 Free Relay of D'Arcy, Abigail Abshire, Cosgrove and Alisa Cooke took first-place by nearly four seconds.
 
Senior Jayssie Haynes won the 200 IM and also contributed second-place finishes in both the 100 and 200 breaststroke events.
 
"Fresno is really strong diving and in both of the backstroke events," Hansen added. "We're going to have to battle hard in those disciplines and get strong performances in other areas. Mikayla and Autumn competed last week in Atlanta, so all of the ladies will have to step up if we're going to get a victory."
 
Like last year, Haynes and Cosgrove are expected to be significant contributors. The `Runners will also look to freshman Lindsey Sohoel-Smith and sophomore Ariane Skeggs for additional scoring.
 
Sohoel-Smith posted season-best times in four events at the Pepperdine Invite, her most recent competition, including times of 1:04.50 and 2:23.06 in the 100 and 200 Breaststroke events, respectively.
 
Skeggs has been a critical piece of the CSUB distance puzzle this season. She will likely factor in, at least, the 200, 500 and 1000 Freestyle swims this weekend. Her respective season best times of 1:52.92 and 5:01.38 would have won the 200 and 500 Free events at last year's dual with the Bulldogs.
 
Freshman Mikayla Popham will be competing against Fresno State for the first time in her career. The Sunshine Coast, Australia native has been a force in dual competition for the Roadrunners this season, including winning four events in the team's competition at California Baptist on Nov. 2.
 
The `Runners enter the meet with a head-to-head record of 2-1. Bakersfield dropped its first dual meet of the season at UNLV, on Oct. 10, before knocking off California Baptist and Pomona-Pitzer in a pair of head-to-head meets on Nov. 2.
 
Saturday's match-up is the first of six straight dual meets leading up to the WAC Championships in late February.
 
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Players Mentioned

Abigail Abshire

Abigail Abshire

Free
5' 5"
Sophomore
Alisa Cooke

Alisa Cooke

Free
5' 4"
Senior
Maddie Cosgrove

Maddie Cosgrove

Fly/Free
5' 9"
Senior
Autumn D

Autumn D'Arcy

Fly/ IM
5' 9"
Sophomore
Jayssie Haynes

Jayssie Haynes

Free/Breast/IM
5' 4"
Senior
Mikayla Popham

Mikayla Popham

Free/IM
5' 9"
Freshman
Ariane Skeggs

Ariane Skeggs

Free
5' 5"
Sophomore
Lindsey Sohoel-Smith

Lindsey Sohoel-Smith

Breast
5' 6"
Freshman

Players Mentioned

Abigail Abshire

Abigail Abshire

5' 5"
Sophomore
Free
Alisa Cooke

Alisa Cooke

5' 4"
Senior
Free
Maddie Cosgrove

Maddie Cosgrove

5' 9"
Senior
Fly/Free
Autumn D

Autumn D'Arcy

5' 9"
Sophomore
Fly/ IM
Jayssie Haynes

Jayssie Haynes

5' 4"
Senior
Free/Breast/IM
Mikayla Popham

Mikayla Popham

5' 9"
Freshman
Free/IM
Ariane Skeggs

Ariane Skeggs

5' 5"
Sophomore
Free
Lindsey Sohoel-Smith

Lindsey Sohoel-Smith

5' 6"
Freshman
Breast
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