Men Claim Title, Women Take Third at Coyote Extravaganza

The South Dakota Coyote swim and dive team was determined to have a great showing on their home grounds, and they did just that with claiming 13 individual wins and one relay win over the weekend. The Coyote Extravaganza was held Oct. 31 and Nov. 1 at the Natatorium, where the men finished on top and the women placed third overall.

“I think we have a lot of really great races. We saw a lot of really good improvements on things we have been working on all season,” said Head Coach Jason Mahowald.

On the first day of the meet, junior Gabbie Ahrendt was the solo champion on the women’s side, by winning the 100 fly with a time of 57.17.

For the men’s side, the Coyotes recorded five wins on the day. Sophomore Nick Rounds won the 100 fly (49.60) and 100 back (48.92). Sophomore Alex Parkinson claimed a win in the 500 free with a time of 4:38.68, and freshman Maddox Mork won the three meter dive with his score of 284.15.

The final win of day one came from the men’s 400 medley relay team, consisting of junior Joaquin Contreras-Fallico, sophomores Ethan LaBounty and James Schreiber, and Rounds.

Ahrendt kept her momentum going into the second day by finishing on top in the 200 fly (2:09.07) and the 100 IM (59.52). The USD women had two more champions on day two, with senior Camilla Brogger-Andersen winning the 1000 free (10:45.43), and freshman Henley Hatzung claiming the 200 back (2:04.38).

“It feels amazing. I felt like my training finally paid off, and to see it come together across all three races is really rewarding. Each event challenged me in a different way, so finishing strong in all of them means a lot,” said Ahrendt.

For day two of the men’s side, Parkinson got his second win of the meet in the 1000 free (9:30.78). Contreras-Fallico took first in the 200 back with a time of 1:52.46, and freshman Brock Russell won the 200 IM with a time of 1:54.02. 

Rounds recorded his third win of the weekend when he won the 50 free with a time of 20.31.

“Not only do they (Rounds and Ahrendt) perform really well, but they are two of our hardest workers in practice each and every day. I think when you have some of your most talented kids that are also some of your hardest workers, that’s a recipe for everybody to get better,” said Mahowald.

The Coyote women finished third overall with 1,909 team points, and the men came out on top with 2,044.5 team points.

The swim and dive fall season will conclude with the St. Thomas Invite in St. Paul, Minnesota, on Nov. 20-22.