INDIANOLA, Iowa – The Simpson men’s and women’s swimming and dive team both split in their season-opening double-duel against Coe College and Tabor College at the Indianola YMCA on Saturday.

Women – Final Team Results

Simpson 139, Tabor 62

Coe 115, Tabor 63

Coe 110, Simpson 92

Men – Final Team Results

Simpson 128, Tabor 60

Coe 154, Tabor 38

Coe 138, Simpson 84 

Megan Buitendorp, Erica Carlson, Katherine Rubins and Emma Gerdis finished the 200-yard freestyle relay in 1:51.65 to take first in the event. Carlson swam her leg in 26.82, the fastest time in the group and the entire relay.

“Comparing with where we are at the same time last year, I’m very happy with where we are at,” head coach Tom Caccia said. “I’m very happy to open with a split.”

Simpson (1-1, 0-1 IIAC) came in second in six different events, with Tori Haag coming up just 0.31 seconds behind Tabor’s Aleya Hill for second place in the 100-yard freestyle. 

Coe’s Ayaka Okamota placed first in the 100-yard backstroke, 50-yuard freestyle and in the 200-yard medley relay to help the Kohawks (3-1, 1-1 IIAC) to a 2-0 sweep.

Tabor fell to 0-3 on the season although Hill swam the fastest time in the 100 and 200-yard freestyle to lead the Bluejays.

Notable women finishers:

200-yard medley relay: 2^nd – Megan Buitendorp, Mikala Williams-Yee Carlson and Haag (2:00.24)

100-yard backstroke: 2^nd – Carlson (1:06.42)

100-yard breaststroke: 2^nd, Williams-Yee (1:13.40)

500-yard freestyle: 2^nd, Rubins (6:15.24)

1,000-yard freestyle: 2^nd, Rubins (12:58.50)  

Men’s Recap & Results:

Dylan Gray won the 50-yard freestyle and Kyle McKim took first in the 100-yard breaststroke as the Storm men went 1-1 in their season opening double-duel with Coe College and Tabor College at the Indianola YMCA. 

Other Finishers:

Kyle McKim – 3rd – 200 yard IM (2:14.89) 

Michael Reuter – 3rd – 100-yard butterfly (1:01.21)

Grant Gullickson – 3rd -100-yard backstroke (1:11.90

Gray edged Tabor’s Tristan Ward by just 0.52 seconds, finishing the 50-yard freestyle in 23.09, 0.81 seconds behind his season-high in the same event last season. 

After a strong finish to last season, McKim started off in the same fashion, beating Coe’s Tucker Dangremond by 0.19 seconds, touching the wall in 1:02.31.

“It was nice swimming against someone and having that competition,” McKim said. “I felt that coming into this year I knew what to do right after the bat.”

Coe (3-1, 2-1) had eight first place finishers, led by Corbin Faidley who placed first in the 100-yard freestyle, the 200-yard freestyle and the 200-yard freestyle relay – posting a team-best 22.84 in his leg of the race.

The Tabor Bluejays fell to 0-3 on the season, failing to record a first place finisher.

Diving Results:

Senior JJ Hansen not only won the one-meter and three-meter diving competitions but broke the school records that he set in each of the last two seasons.

Hansen recorded a 196.20 in the one-meter dive, 24.30 points better than his previously held record set in 2014. He would shatter his record of 175.75 in the three-meter dive with a score of 212.30, 50.34 points better than the Coe’s Justin Sauter.

“JJ was much more relaxed in his dives and he was confident,” head coach Tom Caccia said of Hansen. “He’s done all the dives before and none of them were new. He was just able to focus on diving.”

Up Next

Simpson is back in the pool next Friday when it hosts IIAC-rival Loras College at 6 p.m. at the Indianola YMCA.

“We are going to be going with different events [next week] but we got some information this week that is going to help us next week,” Caccia said.