FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. (September 21, 2023) – Northern Arizona Swimming and Diving will commence its 41st season this Friday, hosting the 28th annual pentathlon at the Wall Aquatic Center beginning at 2 p.m.
This season's pentathlon will consist of five events: the 100m butterfly, 100m backstroke, 100m breaststroke, 100m freestyle and the 200m individual medley. Points are calculated based on the times swimmers post in each event, with the most cumulative points will determine the winner.
In back-to-back seasons, a true freshman has won the pentathlon, with Gracie Munk posting 3,610 points in last season's event and Ashley Lawrence putting up 3,520 back in 2021.
Senior Annie Carlton will be looking to improve off of her third-place, 3,230-point finish from a season ago in her final pentathlon. Carlton placed third in both the 100 freestyle and the 100 backstroke.
Making her pentathlon debut last season, sophomore Elsa Musselman put up a fourth-place finish, coming in second in the 100 fly with a 1:05.24 mark. Behind Musselman was a three-way tie for fifth place that included Maddy Rey, Abigail Tashlein and Bena Koehn.
Northern Arizona's pentathlon is used by the coaching staff to prepare for the five-month-long season ahead. It gives the coaches an opportunity to see where the team stacks up before the regular season and make evaluations and improvements before the first official meet.
NAU's first official meet of the new season will be at Idaho on Oct. 20. Before the opener, the Lumberjacks will face off against one another in the blue vs. gold contest at the Wall Aquatic Center on Oct. 13.
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