Columbia
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Fordham
10/31/2026 6:00:00 PM | Women's Swimming and Diving
Lions defeat Rams 186-105 to improve to 2-0
BRONX, N.Y. — The Columbia women's swimming and diving team continued its strong start to the 2026-27 season on Saturday afternoon, defeating Fordham 186-105 on the road. Competing for the second time in as many days, the Lions turned in another dominant performance to improve to 2-0 on the young season.
Columbia opened the meet with a victory in the 200 medley relay, as the team of Romy Kirby, Natalia Diaz, Ella Chan, and Isabel Lee combined for a winning time of 1:44.66.
Mia Avansino led the way in the distance events, winning the 1000 free with a time of 10:30.03. Samantha Segerson finished second at 10:37.62, while first-year Maebelle Stern placed third at 10:40.30 to complete a Columbia sweep of the top three spots. Avansino followed with another victory in the 200 free, touching the wall at 1:54.39. First-year Brisa Gao finished second in the event with a time of 1:55.06.
Kirby continued her impressive start to her collegiate career, winning the 100 back for the second consecutive day with a time of 56.70. Jilly MacNamara finished third at 58.11, while Lorelai Page took fourth at 59.34.
Ashley Hong earned her first individual victory of the season in the 100 breast, clocking in at 1:05.09. Diaz followed closely behind in second at 1:05.32, while first-year Mary Bao finished third at 1:05.64 to give Columbia another sweep. Hong later completed the breaststroke sweep with a victory in the 200 breast, touching the wall at 2:20.91.
Lee picked up her second consecutive victory in the 50 free, finishing with a time of 23.72. Sophie Kloppenburg placed third at 24.57 before earning a victory of her own in the 100 free with a time of 52.84.
The first-year class continued to make an impact in the 200 back, as Gao earned her first collegiate individual victory with a time of 2:02.99. Kirby finished just behind her in second at 2:03.18, while Shaelyn Shields completed another Columbia sweep with a third-place finish at 2:06.98.
Chan also claimed her second individual victory in as many days, winning the 100 fly with a time of 57.59. Annabelle Kung finished third in the event at 58.66.
For the divers, Sophia Wells continued her outstanding opening weekend, sweeping both diving events for the second consecutive day. Coming off her program-record performance against NYU on Friday, Wells won the 1m dive with a score of 285.15 before taking first in the 3m dive with a score of 291.80.
Valeriya Bondarenko finished second in the 3m with a score of 256.95, while Lily Sherman placed third at 256.15. Sherman also earned a fourth-place finish in the 1m with a score of 257.65.
Full results from the meet, including all of the Lions' top performers and times, can be found HERE.
"Today was really encouraging, Head Diving Coach Scott Donie said. "Everyone competed well today and the three meter sweep was particularly sweet. Looking forward to getting back to work as we prepare for our Ivy opener."
ON DECK
Next weekend, the Lions will begin Ivy League competition, hosting a tri-meet with Princeton and Dartmouth at Uris. Diving will take place from 2-5 p.m. on Friday, and swimming will begin at 2 p.m. on Saturday following the men's meet.
A full breakdown of Columbia's 2026-27 schedule can be found HERE.
For the latest on the Columbia women's swimming and diving program, follow @CULionsWSD and @CULionsDiving on Instagram and Twitter, and on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.
