This post was updated Oct. 7 at 1:57 a.m.
A gritty performance from their deep roster brought home a win for the Bruins.
“This meet is always one where it’s early season competition. It’s sloppy, it’s gritty and it’s figuring everything out,” said coach Jordan Cordry. “I’m incredibly proud of the boldness, of the grittiness and of the team effort shown by this group.”
No. 20 UCLA swim and dive took home its first victory of the season Saturday, returning from the two-day Fresno State Invitational with 1097.5 points across the 22 events it competed in. San Diego State finished the closest behind UCLA, recording 920 points in the six-team field.
The Bruins collected 330 points through five relays, clinching each on overall point count and three outright. While each school can only earn points for its top two relay teams, the Bruins fielded three or four quads in each event.
“Especially in those medley relays where our depth shows, I think that it comes from the depth of our training group,” Cordry said. “We’ve got good, strong training groups, people that push each other.”
The Bruins’ depth was evident beyond just the relays. Thirteen athletes recorded a combined 128.5 points in the 50-yard freestyle and the 100-backstroke to add to the Bruins’ quadruple-digit tally.
Cordry said depth will be especially helpful during dual meets across the season.
“When we’ve got that kind of depth, not only does it add up to points in dual meets, but it also gives you momentum,” Cordry said. “You have a really big, strong event, get the team all hyped and ready to go, and then you carry momentum into the next thing.”
Two individuals also stepped up in Fresno, with senior Ana Jih-Schiff and graduate student Emma Harvey – a 2024 Olympian – recording two individual wins apiece alongside a relay win.
Jih-Schiff won both the 100- and 200-yard individual medleys and said the latter victory came after she sensed the team needed an energy shift.
“I just stood behind the blocks, and I was like, ‘There’s no way we’re losing this one.’ All I thought about was that event for the team and getting my hand on the wall first, no matter what,” Jih-Schiff said. “I also knew I couldn’t really see anyone on the outside lane, so it really pushed me past my limits, and it ended up being one of my best times in a dual meet.”
Meanwhile, Harvey displayed her stroke versatility, winning the 100-yard backstroke and the 100-yard butterfly, in addition to a second-place finish in the 50-yard freestyle.
Cordry said one of Harvey’s strengths is her underwaters, which help her excel across disciplines.
“I forgot how much fun it is to compete with a team,” Harvey said about her first swim as a Bruin. “It was awesome. I really, really enjoyed it from start to finish. Obviously, it’s tiring, but in the best way, and I loved it.”
The nature of the Fresno State Invite allows swimmers to enter in races they don’t always swim, which Harvey said provides the opportunity to show off a glimpse of the team’s future.
“They’re (freshmen are) vocal, they are confident, they are strong, they are hardworking and that just got to be shown off a bunch of times,” Cordry said. “They fit right into this team and this team culture, but they really stepped up and held their own this weekend.”
Cordry added that following a tragedy within the program this week, the UCLA Athletic department granted her the ability to bring nearly her entire team to Fresno State in an effort to be together, contrary to the original plan, which she said she was grateful for.
UCLA will continue the season with its annual Blue and Gold intrasquad on Oct. 25 and 26 before picking up competition again against Arizona in November.
Comments are closed.