JACKSONVILLE, Fla. – The No. 18 FGCU swimming & diving team notched its first conference win of the season after defeating UNF by a final score of 180-91 at the Semmes Aquatic Center in Jacksonville, Fla., on Saturday afternoon. The Green and Blue touched the pads first in 14 of 15 events.

"We had a good day of racing," said FGCU head coach Neal Studd. "We mixed some things up with the girls in some cases, but they had fun with it and swam well. We're looking forward to getting back in the pool as we host Notre Dame next weekend."

The Eagles finished in the top three spots in the 200 medley relay with the quartet of Sandra Wilk (Lexington, Ky./Paul Laurence Dunbar HS), Taylor Ballard (Brandon, Miss./Brandon HS), Katie Latham (Deal, Kent, United Kingdom/Sir Roger Manwood's School) and Rebecca DeRogatis (Fort Lauderdale, Fla./Indian River/Cardinal Gibbons HS) winning the event in 1:47.71. To cap the day off, the 200 freestyle relay of Kristen Jamison (Tucson, Ariz./Arizona/Catalina Foothills HS), Lani Cabrera (Bridgetown, Barbados/St. Ursala's Secondary School), DeRogatis and Sara Hamilton (Stonehaven, Scotland/Mackie Academy) also finished first in their respective event in a time of 1:39.14.

Individually, Cabrera got the day started with a season-best performance in the 1000 freestyle. She won the race in a time of 10:21.21, finishing nearly 21 seconds before her nearest competitor in teammate Alexis Simpson (Naples, Fla./Gulf Coast HS). Latham also turned in a season-best performance in the 100 IM after touching the pads in 57.73 seconds and finishing four seconds ahead of the field. Her time in the event was also good for a FGCU program record.

Prior to contributing in the 200 freestyle relay victory, Hamilton recorded a pair of individual wins as she finished first in both the 50 freestyle and 100 freestyle in times of 24.63 seconds and 52.63 seconds, respectively. Junior Hannah Soutar (Edinburg, Scotland/ Broughton HS) and freshman Kiley Eble (Cleveland, Ohio/Gilmour Academy) also won multiple races in the dual meet. Soutar won both the 100 breaststroke (1:07.13) and 200 IM (2:10.08), while Eble touched first in the 100 backstroke (1:00.50) and 100 breaststroke (59.10) to earn her first collegiate swimming victories.

Fellow freshman Melissa Marinheiro (Davie, Fla./West Broward HS), Sarah Ubele (Tyngsboro, Mass./Tyngsboro HS) and Ballard also earned their first individual victories as a collegiate student-athlete with wins in the 500 freestyle (5:03.09), 200 backstroke (2:08.81) and 200 breaststroke (2:25.03), respectively. Additionally, sophomore Christina Herfurth (Greenacres, Fla.John I. Leonard HS) won the 200 butterfly after touching the pads in 2:07.38.

FGCU SEASON-BEST TIMES SATURDAY
1000 Freestyle: 10:21.21 (Cabrera)
100 IM: 57.73 (Latham)

FGCU VICTORIES SATURDAY
200 Medley Relay: 1:47.71 (Wilk, Ballard, Latham, DeRogatis)
1000 Freestyle: 10:21.21 (Cabrera)
100 IM: 57.73 (Latham)
100 Backstroke: 1:00.50 (Eble)
100 Breaststroke: 1:07.13 (Soutar)
200 Butterfly: 2:07.38 (Herfurth)
50 Freestyle: 24.63 (Hamilton)
100 Freestyle: 52.63 (Hamilton)
200 Backstroke: 2:08.81 (Ubele)
200 Breaststroke: 2:25.03 (Ballard)
500 Freestyle: 5:03.09 (Me. Marinheiro)
100 Butterfly: 59.10 (Eble)
200 IM: 2:10.08 (Soutar)
200 Freestyle Relay: 1:39.14 (Jamison, Cabrera, DeRogatis, Hamilton)

UP NEXT
FGCU will return to Fort Myers and prepare to host Notre Dame in a dual meet at the FGCU Aquatics Center at Friday, Oct. 23 at 5 p.m.

FOLLOW ALONG
For up-to-date coverage of FGCU women's swimming and diving, follow us on Twitter @FGCU_WSWIM and visit www.FGCUAthletics.com where full recaps and results will be available.
 
HEAD COACH NEAL STUDD
Neal Studd, who has garnered five CCSA Coach of the Year awards, won six CCSA Championships (2009-13, 2015) and guided the Eagles to a 29-1 (.967) CCSA all-time record since FGCU started its program in 2007. In just four years of postseason eligibility, Studd has coached NCAA Championship Meet qualifiers and competitors each of the four years, with 2015 yielding the best results to date as the Eagles finished a mid-major best 26th and produced four CSCAA All-America honorees.
 
SUPPORT THE CAUSE
FGCU Athletics sponsors events throughout the year to benefit the FGCU Campus Food Pantry (www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry) and the Harry Chapin Food Bank (www.harrychapinfoodbank.org), FGCU Athletics' charities of choice. For more information, including how to make a contribution, please visit www.fgcu.edu/foodpantry and utilize the hashtag #FeedFGCU to help raise awareness.