The Hurricanes made quite the splash Friday afternoon, overpowering Liberty University 119–86 on the opening day of Dual-A-Pool-Ooza at the Whitten University Center Pool in Coral Gables.
Between a dominant showing on the diving boards, multiple first-place finishes in the pool and impressive performances from Miami’s underclassmen, the Hurricanes wasted no time making their presence felt.
Miami set the tone early in the 400-yard medley relay, with the Hurricanes’ top quartet clocking a 3:44.29 to secure valuable points against the Flames.
But the Hurricanes were just getting started.
In the 1,000-yard freestyle, Peyton Leigh led a one-two punch for Miami, touching the wall first in 10:15.45. Teammate Taylor Johannsen followed closely behind, finishing second in 10:17.55 to give the Hurricanes a strong showing in the distance event.
The momentum carried over to the diving boards, where Miami’s Emily Francis and Aurelie Sevigny delivered a one-two finish in the women’s 3-meter springboard.
Francis soared to first place with a score of 330.60, while Sevigny secured second with 311.35, giving Miami a decisive advantage in the event.
With veteran All-American diver Margo O’Meara and back-to-back NCAA 1-meter springboard champion Chiara Pellacani no longer competing for the Hurricanes, Coach Dario di Fazio’s newest additions are proving to be hungry enough to fill the shoes left by Pellacani and O’Meara.
Back in the pool, veteran Ashlyn Massey kept the Hurricanes rolling with a first-place finish in the 100-yard butterfly, clocking an impressive 54.38 seconds.
Miami continued to showcase its depth across the competition.
Phoebe Mayo delivered a strong performance in the 200-yard backstroke, finishing as Miami’s top swimmer with a time of 1:59.89, while Sophie Lenze secured second place in the 200-yard breaststroke with a 2:18.67 finish.
In one of the afternoon’s tightest races, freshman Joslyn Bolton nearly captured the 100-yard freestyle crown, finishing just three-tenths of a second behind Liberty’s Sadie Huenefeld.
Bolton touched the wall in 51.46 seconds, narrowly trailing Huenefeld’s winning time of 51.16.
The Hurricanes delivered another thrilling finish in the 50-yard backstroke, where Leah Evans edged out teammate Leah Treglia for first place.
Evans finished in 25.82 seconds, just six-hundredths of a second ahead of Treglia’s 25.88, giving Miami another one-two finish.
Marissa Inouye also contributed to Miami’s strong afternoon, placing second in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:04.73.
The victory gave Miami a strong start to the two-day competition, which also featured FIU defeating Vanderbilt 135–67 on Friday.
The Hurricanes will look to carry that momentum into the second day of Dual-A-Pool-Ooza, with competition resuming Saturday at 10 a.m. at the Doral Aquatics Center.