ST. PETERS, Mo. – The UIndy swimming and diving teams were back in the pool Saturday, facing four Division II opponents in dual action. The teams opted for the 13-event program, pitting the Greyhounds in head-to-head dual scoring against Delta State, Truman, Missouri S&T and host Lindenwood. The UIndy men earned four wins on the day, while the women were competitive against all four opponents.
 
The meet featured some tough competition, especially on the men's side. All five of the participating men's squads scored points at last year's NCAA Division II Championships, with four of the teams finishing in the top 15 and two in the top five.
 
"Honestly, I didn't expect to walk out with wins against all these teams on the men's side," admitted head coach Jason Hite. "It's a good sign, but we know it is very early in the season; everything in our sport is geared towards February and March. This is definitely a step in the right direction and something we're excited about accomplishing."
 
Vitor Botana continued his solid start to his sophomore season, winning both the 500 and 100 freestyle races. Freshman diver Payton Staman also won a pair of events, capturing the win on both the one- and three-meter boards. Sophomore Rodrigo Codo Berti won the 100 back while taking second in the 200 free.
 
In addition, Berti led off for the Hounds in the 200 medley relay win, joining Bartosz Zarzecki, Bucky Coonradt and Ante Lucev for a time of 1:32.53.
 
Meanwhile, the UIndy women also faced a stout field, including a Delta State team that placed 10th at Nationals last year, as a well as a 12th-place Truman squad. Though the Hounds did not get a dual win Saturday, Coach Hite saw plenty of positives.

"The women looked great," said the second-year coach.  "We had some ladies continue to show growth and race against some strong competition. Defending GLVC-champ Truman is a team we're gunning for and I felt like we fared well against them. We're continuing to close the gap."
 
Junior Malvina Shoukri took third in the 100 free and fourth in the 50 free, freshman Melanie Arnold took fourth in the 1000 free, and freshman Sotia Neophytou placed fourth in the 100 fly.
 
Up next for the Hounds is a home meet Nov. 4-5. They'll host a trio of GLVC teams in McKendree, Lewis and Bellarmine.