MONTEREY PARK, Calif. - The Fresno Pacific swim and dive team wrapped up their postseason at the PCSC Championships  on Saturday evening. The team collected several podium-finishes, an overall third place medal for the men's team, and were able to celebrate their seniors in their final races as Sunbirds.

"Wow, what a last day! I cannot be prouder and more blessed to have this team for my first year!" mentioned head coach Ray Eggert. "There has been so much growth for every individual and as a team. Everyone had a great and memorable championship meet to finish out the year! The support that the team has had for each other and the way that I have grown as a coach cannot be highlighted enough."

Overall, the men finished third with only 12 swimmers, three of which were seniors. The women came in ninth place with hopes of learning and building upon this season for next year. Fresno Pacific left the meet with 43 seasonal-best times and 41 more personal best times. 

August Ottesen finished with a total medal count of six of seven of his races, recorded all personal best times and collected three NCAA Division II "B" cuts. He collected them in the 100 fly (48.40), 100 Free (44.66), and 50 Free (20.35).

"I cannot be prouder of his commitment to excellence and his effort in the pool both at practice and at meets. He is the athlete and leader that is going to help transform this team over the next couple years."

Nico Barna also dominated the last two days. He captured a third-place finish in the 100 breaststroke and a fifth-place finish in the 200 breaststroke. Barna also contributed to two podium-finishes for the Sunbirds, specifically the 200 Medley Relay and the 400 Free Relay. The 200 Medley Relay included Ottesen, Barna, Tony Montes, and Santiago Schutte. Whereas, the 400 Free Relay was made up of Ottesen, Barna, Schutte, and Olivier Petre.

Petre was one of three swimmers to record a NCAA Division II "B" cut. He was incredible in the 100 Free, coming in with a time of 44.68.

There were several dominant swims by the freshmen class, specifically by Oskar Herbut, Santiago Schutte, Justin Ferrer and Laurenz Privo. Out of the 16 races the Sunbird men competed in, they had five Top-8 finishes, six Top-16 finishes, and four Top-24 finishes. All of their performances contributed to the third-place finish for the men.

On the women's side, Fresno Pacific had an amazing event in the 100 freestyle, with 10 out of the 11 girls either getting a personal or seasonal best time! Then later at night, Jillian Lambert dropped even more time in her 100 freestyle finishing fifth and earning her another NCAA Division II "B" cut.

"Aside from the times, I cannot speak highly enough of how much these girl's continually show up outside of their swims. Anytime we needed anything they were willing to help out the team. Anytime there was a swim, guys or girls, they were up, cheering and yelling, urging their teammates to go faster. I am excited to move forward with this group of girls and with adding a few more pieces to see what they are capable of the next couple years."

Both Natalie Noble and Cara Moehle continued to impress with drastically improving their mile times and achieving personal best times in the event. Freshman Mia Manno also continued to impress with both her 200 butterfly on Friday night and her 100 freestyle Saturday night. She earned new personal-bests in both and finished 19^th in the 100 freestyle and 11^th in the 200 butterfly.

On the last day, every team at the PCSC Championships recognized their seniors and their final swims as collegiate competitors. The Sunbirds were especially excited to celebrate their senior class one last time!

"Saturday was a very emotional night, with the senior recognition. Even though I have only been here a year, I cannot express how my first year would not have had this much growth if they were not here leading the team alongside me. I know their impact will continue to be apart of the team moving forward and they did a phenomenally job laying the first bricks of this new and improved foundation."

Assistant coach Rebeca Bribiesca Spears proudly mentioned, "This week's conference championship was INSANE. I loved watching everyone show up and race their hearts out. I'm so proud of this team and everything they accomplished this week. The energy, the support, and the grit from start to finish was something really special to be part of. Huge shoutout to our seniors for all the work they've put in throughout their college careers and for never stopping believing in themselves, their goals, and this program. You've left a legacy on this program."

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