RENO, Nev. - The University of Nevada swimming and diving team dropped to 1-5 after a thrilling 126-117 loss to Western Athletic Conference opponent Idaho (4-3).
The Wolf Pack and the Vandals battled into the final event, the 400-yard freestyle relay, with the score tied at 113 points at the start of the race. Fans were kept on edge until the final lap as Nevada's relay team (3:33.00) finished seconds behind Idaho's relay team (3.31.94).
Sophomore Mengjiao Mi (Beijing, China) led the Wolf Pack swimmers with two first-place finishes. The 2009-10 WAC Freshman of the Year recorded a time of 1:53.97 to take first in the 200-yard freestyle and finished first in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 53.43.
Chavisa Thaveesupsoonthorn (So., Bangkok, Thailand) scored points for Nevada by claiming first in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:26.03). Thaveesupsoonthorn also took third in the 400-yard IM (4:38.64) and fifth in the 200-yard backstroke (2:18.70).
Senior Marichi Gandionco (Quezon City, Philippines) and sophomore Gabby Guieb (Seattle, Wash.) also turned in solid performances for the Wolf Pack. Gandionco swam the 200-yard butterfly in 2:10.35 to take first in the event. She also finished fourth in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:58.47. Guieb recorded second-place finishes in the 400-yard IM (4:38.06) and 200-yard backstroke (2:10.74).
The Wolf Pack divers stepped up big again, sweeping the 3-meter and recording the top-two scores on the 1-meter. Two-time WAC Diver of the Week, Grace Huang (Fr., Kaohsiung City, Taiwan), swept both boards with a score of 307.58 on the 3-meter and 281.33 on the 1-meter. Freshman Stephanie Hansen (Surrey, British Columbia, Canada) posted a score of 273.15 to take second on the 3-meter. Aniesa Debaji (Jr., Edmonton, Alberta, Canada) completed Nevada's sweep on the 3-meter with a score of 272.63 and finished second on the 1-meter with a score of 260.03.
Nevada will travel to San Juan, Puerto Rico Jan. 1-8 for its annual training trip. The team will return to competition Jan. 15 at Lombardi Pool when it faces Cal State East Bay and UC Davis in a double-dual scheduled to start at 12 p.m.
