MALIBU, Calif. – Azusa Pacific took to the starting blocks for the last time before the conference championships Saturday, competing in a dual meet at Pepperdine University.

Aleena Herrera came within a second of a season best in the 1000 freestyle, finishing second in the event with a time of 10:46.01.  Angelica Benitez took second in the 200 freestyle, improving on her seed time by a full five seconds, hitting the wall in 1:58.37.  The real highlight of the day came when Sydnee Wilson beat the entire field to the finish line in the 50 free, winning the spring in a time of 24.22 and earning nine points toward the team score.

Benitez and Herrera would provide the Cougars with their biggest boost of the day on the scoreboard, as the duo finished 1-2 in the 200 individual medley, with Benitez winning in a time of 2:08.64, two seconds ahead of Herrera.  To close out the day, the quartet of Wilson, Mikaela Maemura, Herrera, and Ellie Sivesind hit the wall in the 4x100 freestyle relay in 3:37.62, good enough for second place on the day.

In all, the host Waves won 14 out of 16 events as well as the meet, though the Cougars kept the final score respectable, falling by a final of 167-122.  In head-to-head meets this season, the Cougars finished the 2025-26 season with a record of 1-3.

Up Next: The Cougars now have two and a half weeks to round into shape for the PCSC conference championships.  Azusa Pacific will look to defend its title at the same pool where it won last season.  The action will take place at East Los Angeles College from February 11-14.