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Iona University Athletics

Iona Swim
Nick Gualtiere - IonaGaels.com

Women's Swimming & Diving Ionagaels.com

Iona Swim Women & Men Split on the Road in Season Opener

NEWARK, NJ - The Iona University men's and women's swimming and diving teams opened the 2026-27 season on the road Saturday, with the women earning a 164-134 victory over Metro Conference rival Siena University, while the men fell 165-126 to New Jersey Institute of Technology at the Highlanders' home pool.

Both squads came out of the blocks strong, with the Iona women's 200-yard medley relay team of Raegan O'Brien, Francesca Fields, Victoria Mordaunt and Julia Sherrill posting a first-place time of 1:47.92, defeating Siena by 2.37 seconds.

The Iona men's quartet of Kieran Egan, Max Buchen, Wyatt Julian and Nick Patino also earned a victory in the 200-yard medley relay, finishing in 1:35.62, 2.38 seconds ahead of the field. In the first individual events following the relays, senior diver Emma Todd finished second in the women's 1-meter springboard, just 4.25 points behind Siena's Claire Donlan. Junior Joel Picard easily won the men's 1-meter event, posting a score of 252.10, 33.2 points ahead of the field.

Freshman Francesca DeNucci enjoyed a strong collegiate debut, leading a 1-2-3 Iona finish in the women's 1,000-yard freestyle. DeNucci clocked 10:50.64 in her first collegiate race, followed by Kate Kennedy in second at 11:01.42 and Anabel Huffstutler in third at 11:16.80. The Iona men placed three swimmers in the top five of the 1,000-yard freestyle, with Tomek Oakes, Johnny Casalinuovo and Corey Calderone finishing third, fourth and fifth, respectively.

DeNucci followed up her 1,000-yard freestyle victory with another win in the 200-yard freestyle, going wire-to-wire to finish in 1:58.32. Senior Harry Platt captured the men's 200-yard freestyle in 1:42.89, while O'Brien and Egan earned victories in the 100-yard backstroke with respective times of 58.42 and 51.10. Sophomore Francesca Fields made it five consecutive wins for the Gaels, touching first in the women's 100-yard breaststroke in 1:08.30. Teammate Hailey Baker finished just 0.4 seconds behind her. In the men's race, Buchen, Danny Lezi and Patino placed second, fourth and fifth, respectively, with times of 58.45, 59.26 and 1:00.11.

The women's 200-yard butterfly saw Marisa Hengesbach and Ava Loftus finish third and fourth, respectively, in 2:16.91 and 2:19.35. Noah Giunta placed third in the men's 200-yard butterfly at 2:00.16. Iona earned victories in both 50-yard freestyle races, with Victoria Mordaunt winning the women's event in 24.68 and Patino taking the men's race in 21.34.

In the second diving events of the day, Todd finished fifth in the women's 3-meter springboard with a score of 167.65, while Picard picked up his second victory of the meet in the men's 3-meter event with a score of 241.65.

Freshman Julia Sherrill earned her first collegiate victory in the women's 100-yard freestyle, touching first in 53.93. Platt and James Gonzalez finished second and third in the men's 100-yard freestyle with times of 47.09 and 47.30, respectively. O'Brien picked up her second individual victory of the meet in the women's 200-yard backstroke, finishing in 2:07.15. Egan placed second in the men's event at 1:53.20.

The Iona women swept the top three spots in the 200-yard breaststroke, with Fields, Baker and Sydney Cronin finishing first, second and third, respectively. Fields touched first in 2:30.99. Lezi and Buchen placed second and fourth in the men's event with times of 2:09.96 and 2:11.26. DeNucci earned her third individual victory of the meet in the women's 500-yard freestyle, posting a time of 5:17.44. Kennedy finished second at 5:20.42, while Platt and Oakes placed third and fourth in the men's event.

Mordaunt picked up another win in the women's 100-yard butterfly, finishing in 58.24. Wyatt Julian and Harry Summers placed third and fourth in the men's 100-yard butterfly at 52.61 and 53.28, respectively. O'Brien earned silver in the women's 200-yard individual medley, while Buchen finished fifth in the men's event.

The women's 400-yard freestyle relay saw Siena jump out to an early lead before Sherrill, Mordaunt, Mary Gare Waring and anchor Kate Kennedy made a late charge. The Gaels were ultimately touched out at the wall by 0.34 seconds, finishing in 3:38.96. The Iona men closed out the meet with a strong early-season time of 3:07.28, with Egan, Platt, Wales and Gonzalez combining to post the mark.

Following the meets, head coach Nick Cavataro praised the effort from both teams while noting areas for improvement. "We had solid efforts up and down the lineup in both meets; however, there were spots where it looked like we were a bit too cautious. I know we will be better next week at Hynes against Rider."

Gaels take on Rider Oct. 10 at the Hynes Center for the Gaels opening home meet of the season.
 
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Players Mentioned

Max Buchen

Max Buchen

Breast
5' 10"
Junior
Kieran Egan

Kieran Egan

Back / Free
6' 2"
Senior
Noah Giunta

Noah Giunta

IM
6' 1"
Senior
James Gonzalez

James Gonzalez

Free
6' 2"
Sophomore
Wyatt Julian

Wyatt Julian

Back
6' 2"
Sophomore
Tomek Oakes

Tomek Oakes

Free
6' 4"
Junior
Joel Picard

Joel Picard

Diver
5' 6"
Junior
Harry Platt

Harry Platt

Sprint Free
6' 5"
Senior
Harry Summers

Harry Summers

Fly
5' 10"
Junior
Hailey Baker

Hailey Baker

Breast / IM
5' 6"
Junior

Players Mentioned

Max Buchen

Max Buchen

5' 10"
Junior
Breast
Kieran Egan

Kieran Egan

6' 2"
Senior
Back / Free
Noah Giunta

Noah Giunta

6' 1"
Senior
IM
James Gonzalez

James Gonzalez

6' 2"
Sophomore
Free
Wyatt Julian

Wyatt Julian

6' 2"
Sophomore
Back
Tomek Oakes

Tomek Oakes

6' 4"
Junior
Free
Joel Picard

Joel Picard

5' 6"
Junior
Diver
Harry Platt

Harry Platt

6' 5"
Senior
Sprint Free
Harry Summers

Harry Summers

5' 10"
Junior
Fly
Hailey Baker

Hailey Baker

5' 6"
Junior
Breast / IM