The UNI swimming and diving team kicked off its 2025-26 season on Saturday afternoon with its annual Purple and Gold Intrasquad meet inside the Glen F. Henry Pool. In a close contest, the purple squad edged out the gold team by a score of 123-118. The afternoon began with the 200-yard medley relay, where the gold team of Morgan Raether, Neriah Giedrys, Hannah Nedder, and Abby Lear narrowly topped the purple relay of Elyse Brayton, Sydney Aird, Nikki Walters, and Morgan Meyer.
In the 500-yard freestyle, gold’s Abigail Barkhurst and Sam Oeltjen claimed first and second place, while purple’s Kirsten Tarran took third. The 200-yard individual medley saw Nikki Walters earn the win for the purple team, with gold’s Molly Johnson and Rachel Rolow finishing second and third. The 200-yard freestyle went to Morgan Meyer for the purple team, followed by gold swimmers Jennifer Barajas and Natalie Kuboshek in second and third. In the 50-yard freestyle, gold’s Abby Lear touched first, ahead of purple’s Charlotte Sander and gold’s Morgan Raether.
The 100-yard butterfly was another strong showing for gold, with Hannah Nedder taking first. Purple’s Nikki Walters and Natalie Harris finished second and third. The 50-yard freestyle title went to Morgan Meyer for purple, with Natalie Kuboshek and Josie Parton of gold rounding out the top three. In the 100-yard backstroke, purple’s Elyse Brayton claimed first, followed by gold’s Morgan Raether and Sabra Brueggen. The 100-yard breaststroke was dominated by gold as Neriah Giedrys and Aspen Cole secured first and second, while purple’s Sydney Aird took third.
The meet concluded with the 200-yard freestyle relay, where the purple quartet of Charlotte Sander, Averie Bilskemper, Natalie Harris, and Morgan Meyer took first place. The gold team of Morgan Raether, Abby Lear, Hannah Nedder, and Josie Parton finished second. Over in the diving well, Erica Peters led the purple team with a win on the one-meter springboard, while gold’s Trista Thompson and Avery Hogan took second and third.
To wrap up the afternoon, the Panther divers added a fun twist with a 50-yard freestyle sprint. Peters and Coonrad led the way for the purple team, while gold’s Addison Bausman finished third. UNI swimmers also joined in on a one-meter diving competition, with Meyer winning for purple and Aspen Cole and Josie Parton placing second and third for gold.
