MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The West Virginia University men's and women's swimming and diving teams split a pair of dual meets against Villanova on Thursday afternoon, at the Aquatic Center at Mylan in Morgantown.
 
The men's team was victorious over the Wildcats, earning a score of 195-96, while the women fell, 156-144. In total, West Virginia tallied 25-of-32 event victories on the day, as freshman Hunter Armstrong led the way with four total wins, including two solos, in the contest. Eight Mountaineers tallied multiple victories, and 18 different Mountaineers earned a victory against the Wildcats.
 
"Overall, our men swam really well, and they continue to get themselves in a good spot for Big 12s in a few weeks," WVU coach Vic Riggs said. "On the women's side, I feel like we let this one slip away. The divers once again did a great job on the boards to really keep the meet within reach. For the swimmers, we had some really great swims despite the loss. I think we came away with what we know we need to do on Saturday to get a win."
 
West Virginia began the meet with a pair of victories in the 400 medley relay. Junior Ally VanNetta, freshman Mathilde Kaelbel, senior Morgan Bullock and freshman Emily Haimes grabbed the win for the ladies (3:47.59) and junior Angelo Russo, sophomore Fausto Huerta, senior Sam Neaveill and Armstrong secured it for the men (3:19.80).
 
In the 1,000 freestyle, senior Alex Pampalone paced WVU in the women's event, with a fourth-place time of 10:44.50. Junior Max Gustafson secured the victory for the men after touching the pads in 9:35.64, a new pool record at the Aquatic Center.
 
Armstrong tallied another win for the Mountaineers in the 200 free (1:40.75), while Haimes finished second on the women's side (1:52.20) and junior Giselle Gursoy followed in third (1:54.36). WVU grabbed a pair of wins in the 100 backstroke. VanNetta grabbed the win for the ladies (57.04) and Russo (48.63) led the way for the men.
 
Kaelbel took second place in the women's 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:06.16, before the men posted a dominating finish in their event. Huerta led the way for a 1-2-3 Mountaineer finish with a time of 56.54. Sophomore Ben Brooks (58.51) and freshman Conrad Molinaro (58.57) complete the WVU sweep.
 
West Virginia tallied four more wins in the 200 butterfly and 50 freestyle events just before the first break. Bullock paced the women in the 200 fly in 2:02.19 and senior Jack Frazier finished first for the men with a time of 1:52.31. In the 50 free, senior Julia Nilton picked up her first win of the afternoon after touching the wall in 23.91, while junior Ryen Van Wyk finished in 20.96 for the men.
 
In the diving well, West Virginia earned a pair of sweeps in the women's 3-meter and the men's 1-meter springboard events. Sophomore Camille Burt paced the women, taking first with a score of 280.95. Freshman Holly Darling followed in second with a mark of 275.70, while junior Callie Smith placed third (259.65). For the men, redshirt senior Austin Smith tallied his second straight victory on 1-meter, earning a total of 304.58. Redshirt sophomore Jacob Cardinal Tremblay took second (279.30) and sophomore PJ Lenz finished third (279.00).
 
Burt again led the way for the women on 1-meter, as she notched a score of 271.35. Darling took second place on the event with a 251.55 mark. For the men, Lenz secured first place on 3-meter to lead his team, earning a score of 308.33.

"I'm really proud of the divers today," diving coach Michael Grapner said. "The team enthusiasm and pride each of the divers displayed was what helped them perform so well. When I talk to the divers, I remind them to compete with confidence and consistency. My hope is that they will take today's results and set goals for Saturday's contest."
 
Back in the competition pool, Armstrong added his second solo victory of the day in the 100 free with a time of 45.04, while Haimes finished second in 51.15 in the women's race. Next, VanNetta earned another win in the 200 back in 2:03.99. Senior Trayton Saladin tallied a victory for the men in the event as well, finishing in 1:50.55.
 
Another pair of wins came WVU's way in the 200 breast events, where Kaelbel (2:21.65) and Huerta (2:07.35) led the way for the women's and men's teams, respectively. Gustafson then picked up his second victory of the day in the 500 free with a time of 4:41.97. Sophomore Reka Kovacs paced the women with a fourth-place, 5:11.85 showing.
 
West Virginia added five more victories across the final events of the afternoon. First, in the 100 fly, Bullock (55.18) and Russo (48.63) grabbed wins for the women and men, respectively. In the 200 individual medley, Bullock was edged in the event by Villanova, as she settled for second (2:04.73). Junior Philip Kay picked up the victory in the men's event in 1:53.68.
 
The day concluded with the 200 freestyle relay. The women's team of Nilton, freshmen Harna Minezawa and Ginger Hansen and Haimes finished in second place, as they combined to post a time of 1:34.80. In the men's event, Armstrong, Van Wyk, Neaveill and junior Christopher O'Shea closed the day with a victory in 1:22.01.
 
With Thursday's victory, the Mountaineer men's team improves to 4-1 in dual meets, while the squad remains at 1-0 in the Big 12. The win was the seventh consecutive victory over the Wildcats for the men's team. The women fall to 2-3 in dual-meet competition, and they are 2-0 in the Big 12.
 
The Mountaineers have just one day off before returning to competition for the final meet of the regular season. West Virginia hosts George Washington on Saturday, Feb. 1, beginning at 11 a.m. ET, at the Aquatic Center at Mylan Park. Saturday also is senior day for the Mountaineers, as the squads will honor their 15 senior members.
 
For more information on the Mountaineers, visit WVUsports.com and follow WVUSwimDive on Twitter, Facebook and Instagram.