COLLEGE STATION, TEXAS (UNLVRebels.com) – Senior Kristina Schneider's individual title in the 100 free and sophomore Blanka Bokros' gold in the 200 fly paced UNLV women's  swimming & diving as it finished Saturday's finale to the 2022 Mountain West Championships in third place at Texas A&M's Rec Center Natatorium.
 
HIGHLIGHTS OF THE DAY:
Schneider claimed the conference gold medal in the 100 free (49.65) for the second straight year after taking over the lead after swimming the final 75 yards in 38.36 seconds. The finish made her the first Rebel swimmer to repeat in the event since All-American Lorena Diaconescu earned a three-peat from 2000-02.

Also speeding to a comeback in her 200 fly victory, Bokros outpaced the entire pool with a final 50 yards of 30.62 seconds to move into the lead and finish with the second fastest time in school history (1:57.34*). It was UNLV's first individual title in the 200 fly since 2002 when former Rebel Julie Unrau accomplished the feat.

UNLV concluded the MW meet with 1,249 points, finishing only behind first-place San Diego State (1,541.5) and UNR (1,277.5) in second place. The Rebels, however, still come away with 1.5 points in the Silver State Series presented by IBEW Local 401 and Nevada Donor Network after they bested the Wolf Pack in their home dual back on Jan. 22.
 
THE RUNDOWN – WOMEN:
*Senior Teneka Ash opened the last finals session of the four-day meet in the 1650 free by swimming a personal-best time of 16:35.32 for the silver medal. She was joined among the top-8 finishers by her Scarlet and Gray counterpart Julia Filippova (16:41.64 ) who took fifth place.
*Also adding top-8 finishes in the 200 back, senior Kacey Kiuchi finished fifth (1:59.38) and senior Lindsay Swail followed three spots later in eighth place (2:02.13).
*In a 100 free that saw three other Rebels finish among the eight fastest swimmers alongside Schneider, super senior Kate Afanasyeva (50.12), sophomore Malia Fernandez (50.74), and senior Ava Haase (50.84) placed fifth, seventh and eighth, respectively.
*The Scarlet and Gray's last four top-8 finishers came via the 200 breast and 200 fly. That list included Calysta Bartlett's (2:14.60) seventh-place mark and Ruby Howell's eighth-place finish with a new personal best (2:15.13) in the former, and senior Gabby Lizzul's sixth-place finish and Ash's eighth-place finish in the latter.
*In the last event of the weekend, the Rebels' 'A' team (3:19.12) - comprising Fernandez, Afanasyeva, Haase, and Schneider - brought home the squad's fourth relay medal by taking hold of silver in the 200 free relay.

NEXT FOR THE REBELS: The Scarlet and Gray men's team will now make the trip to the Lone Star State next week for the WAC Championships taking place in Houston from Feb. 23-26.
 
2022 Mountain West Women's Swimming & Diving Championships
Rec Center Natatorium at Texas A&M
College Station, Texas
Saturday, February 19
Final Results
 
Team Scoring
1. San Diego State - 1541.5
2. UNR - 1277.5
3. UNLV - 1249
4. Wyoming - 888.50
5. Colorado State - 760
6. Fresno State - 691.5
7. Air Force - 678
8. San Jose State - 597.5
9. University of New Mexico - 378.5
 
Top-8 Finishes
1650 free: 2nd place - 16:35.32 (Teneka Ash); 5th place - 16:41.64 (Julia Filippova)
200 back: 5th place - 1:59.38 (Kacey Kiuchi); 8th place - 2:02.13 (Lindsay Swail)
100 free: 1st place - 49.65 (Kristina Schneider); 5th Place - 50.12 (Kate Afanasyeva); 7th place - 50.74 (Malia Fernandez); 8th place - 50.84 (Ava Haase)
200 breast - 7th place - 2:14.60 (Calysta Bartlett); 8th place - 2:15.13 (Ruby Howell)
200 fly: 1st place - 1:57.34* (Blanka Bokros); 6th place - 2:00.62 (Gabby Lizzul); 8th place - 2:03.36 (Teneka Ash)
400 free relay - 2nd place - 3:19.12 (Fernandez, Afanasyeva, Haase, Schneider)

^-NCAA 'A' Automatic Time
*-NCAA 'B' Provisional Time
~-NCAA Diving Zone Qualifying Score