Hickory, N.C.----The number five Wingate University women's swimming team earned two Bluegrass Mountain Conference victories over Lenoir-Rhyne University and Catawba College in the Shuford Physical Education Center Pool Saturday afternoon. The Bulldogs defeated the host LR Bears 167-95. Wingate collected a 182-79 triumph over the Catawba Indians. Lenoir-Rhyne survived a late Catawba surge to prevail 131-127.
 
THOUGHTS FROM SENIOR CAPTAIN LETICIA ODORICI:
 
"The meet today was really good! I'm so proud of all the girls for always giving their best and racing until the end! The season has been great so far. We had fast times in our mid-season meet and we finished the first semester as one of the top teams in the nation! I'm so excited for the Bluegrass Mountain Conference meet…I can't wait to see how fast we can go!"
 
THOUGHTS FROM SENIOR CAPTAIN EBBA STILLMAN:
 
"It's exciting to see the great energy and effort we put in today. As we look forward, we are to trying to feed off this energy during the upcoming weeks while we start to prepare for our championship season and conference in mid-February. I am beyond excited to see the hard work we have put in pay off. WUWHAT? WUSWIM!"
 
WINGATE HIGHLIGHTS
 
- Two-time national champion (800 Freestyle Relay) and WU senior Abby Kosic helped the 'Dogs win both relays Saturday afternoon
- Wingate touched first in the 200 Medley Relay (1:48.98) and the 200 Freestyle Relay (1:39.23)
- Junior Sara Aringsmann and sophomore Rachel Kriger won three medals each
- Aringsmann (two silvers, one gold) was one of four WU student-athletes to win an individual event
- She touched first in the 200 Backstroke (2:10.85) and earned two relay silver medals
- Kriger finished second in the 200 Freestyle (2:01.22) and joined Aringsmann on the two silver- medal relay quartets
- Wingate's other gold medal individuals: juniors Kelley Jones and Jaimy Wenhold and freshman Grace Williams
- Kelley Jones won the 100 Freestyle (54.59), Wenhold won the 400 Individual Medley (4:39.22) and Williams won the 200 Freestyle (1:58.96)
- Senior team captains Stillman and Odorici both claimed relay gold medals Saturday afternoon
- Stillman and Kosic joined sophomore Anna Miram and junior Maike Hoener to win the 200 Medley Relay (1:48.98)
- Odorici swam the anchor leg behind Kosic, Hoener and Williams in the meet-ending 200 Freestyle Relay triumph (1:39.23)
- Twenty-four Bulldogs won at least one medal; Hoener, Kosic and Williams brought home two gold medals each
 
ON THE HORIZON
 
- The next home meet for either #WUSWIM team is Friday, Jan. 24
- The WU women host Barton at 5 p.m. on Friday, as the Bulldog family will honor 13 #WUSWIM seniors in a pre-meet ceremony slated to begin at 4:30 p.m.
- The Bulldog men visit Barton Saturday, Jan. 25 at 1 p.m.
- Barton swims its home meets at the Harrison Family YMCA in Rocky Mount, N.C.

WINGATE UNIVERSITY
 
A comprehensive, independent and growing university, Wingate serves more than 3,600 students in North Carolina. Founded in 1896, the University offers 37 undergraduate majors as well as graduate and professional programs. Wingate is home to the Cannon College of Arts and Sciences, the Levine College of Health Sciences, the Byrum School of Business, the Thayer School of Education and the School of Sport Sciences. Wingate blends in-class exploration with out-of-class application to deliver an uncommon and life-changing educational experience.
 
In addition to a robust intramural athletics program, Wingate student athletes compete in 22 NCAA Division II sports. The University has won the South Atlantic Conference Echols Athletic Excellence Award for the past 13 years. Wingate is first in the 2000s among NCAA Division II and North Carolina's colleges and universities with 115 CoSIDA Academic All-America® selections. Wingate is tops among all SAC schools with 124 lifetime Academic All-America® honorees. For more information on WU athletics, go to www.wingatebulldogs.com. Current news and videos can be found at www.wingate.edu.