STOCKTON, Calif. - The Cal State East Bay women's swimming team kicked off their 2023-24 season with a challenging dual meet against the University of the Pacific on Saturday at the Chris Kjeldsen Pool in Stockton, California. Despite falling to the Tigers 195-66, the Pioneers showcased several impressive individual performances that hint at a promising season ahead.

• Alexia Fajardo stole the spotlight in her first meet as a Pioneer, dominating the 200-yard butterfly in her first meet as a Pioneer. Her winning time of 2:05.66 served notice that she'll be a force to be reckoned with in the butterfly events this season. Teammate Tehani Kong also impressed in this event, finishing third with a time of 2:06.84.
• Brooklyn Dressel emerged as East Bay's top sprinter of the day. Her third-place finishes in both the 50-yard and 100-yard freestyle events showcased her speed and consistency. Dressel's times of 23.95 seconds in the 50 free and 52.15 seconds in the 100 free provide a solid foundation for her to build upon as the season progresses.
• In the backstroke events, Hannah Sharp led the way for the Pioneers. Her second-place finish in the 200-yard backstroke (2:07.61) was one of East Bay's strongest performances of the meet.
• Tehani Kong proved to be a versatile threat for the Pioneers. In addition to her strong showing in the 200 butterfly, Kong claimed second place in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 57.13 seconds.
• The meet also saw Taylor Kolsch achieve a personal best in the 200-yard individual medley, touching the wall in 2:20.16. This improvement bodes well for Kolsch's development throughout the season.
• Pacific dominated the meet by winning 13 of 14 events.

Cal State East Bay head coach Shane Pelton following today's season opening dual meet.
"Overall I was very pleased with our energy and effort today. We had some very solid swims despite what the final score looked like. We came out on top last year, but I actually think we raced better this year than last." "[Alexia Fajardo] is a racer. She came into her first dual meet ready to go. We had some high hopes going into today and she delivered. The 200 fly with Lexi, Tehani, and Reese really was a game changer. That race is really difficult early in the season and we couldn't have asked for a better performance. It's a great way to begin for all of them and an even better starting point as we look towards the future."

"Brooklyn is in peak Brooklyn form. Hidden in the results was the 51.2 leadoff of the 400 free relay. Fired up racing and a great way to end the meet. These women got better and better throughout the meet and even more positive was that they carried their own energy all the way through. This meet was a long one and to be able to stay focused and locked in was impressive."

"For me, I think it was a great starting point for our program. Obviously we want to be more competitive with the final results, but everything we are doing now is preparing us to be the best come February and March!"

The Pioneers will look to build on these promising individual performances as they prepare for their next challenge. Cal State East Bay will travel to Reno, Nevada, on Saturday, October 5, to face the University of Nevada at Lombardi Pool. The meet is scheduled to begin at 11 a.m.