ST. PAUL, Minn. -- The St. Catherine University swimming and diving team kicked off the second annual WildBear Invite on Thursday at Butler Center Pool. The Wildcats are in second after seven events with a team score of 258 hosting Augsburg, Concordia St Paul, UJamestown, and Northern State.

The evening began with the Wildcats making an early scoring push in the 200 Medley Relay. The A squad of Natalie Chandler, Olivia Weil, Ella Hochstetler, and Jordyn Grotbo finished strong in 1:51.60, placing fifth overall. The Wildcats continued with relay depth as the B relay placed tenth in 1:57.73. 
 
St. Kate's carried momentum into the sprint events, where two swimmers reached the A-final of the 50 Freestyle. Ella Hochstetler placed seventh in 25.08, just ahead of teammate Jordyn Grotbo, who finished eighth in 25.17. Additional scoring came from Shea Bradley and Olivia Kauffman, who raced in the C-final.
 
One of St. Catherine's strongest collective showings came in the 200 IM, where six swimmers earned finals placements. In the B-final, Chandler placed 13th in 2:21.90, followed closely by Nicolette Harvey in 2:24.64. In the C-final, Sierra Hermansen led the group with a time of 2:23.72, with Richanta Pollard, Hanne Graham-Lawver, and Lizzy Gilman. 
 
The 100 Butterfly provided another podium-level highlight as Hochstetler returned for her second championship final of the night, finishing third in 1:00.13. Anna Sewich added points in the B-final with a swim of 1:05.30, while Isabel Harden and Carys Walsh contributed additional depth scoring in the C-final.
 
The 200-yard backstroke proved to be another dependable event for the Wildcats. Jordyn Grotbo placed fourth with a time of 2:14.85, while Chandler returned to the championship heat to take seventh in 2:18.06. The B- and C-finals were stacked with Wildcats as Pollard, Chikowero, Graham-Lawver, Cook, and Gilman all recorded point-earning finishes.
 
St. Kate's closed out the night with one of its best relay swims, securing a runner-up finish in the 800 Freestyle Relay. The team of Weil, Grotbo, Hochstetler, and Harvey combined for a strong 8:10.47. 

The 1650-yard freestyle was held during the morning session as Weil claimed medalist honors with a time of 18:19.31 with Harvey coming in third clocking a time of 19:35.83. Karina Chattopadhyay finished fifth in at 20:14.95 and Clare Cook rounded out field of Wildcats in seventh at 21:21.48.
 
After day one, St. Kate's sit second in team scoring behind Concordia-St. Paul, with Jamestown and Northern State trailing behind. The Wildcats return to the pool tomorrow looking to continue building momentum, capitalize on strong prelim swims, and keep pace in the team standings.

Prelims Results 
Event 3 – Women's 50 Freestyle (Prelims)
 3rd – Ella Hochstetler – 24.97 (q)
 8th – Jordyn Grotbo – 25.49 (q)
 23rd – Olivia Kauffman – 26.82 (q)
 24th – Shea Bradley – 27.21 (q)
 27th – Carys Walsh – 28.39
 28th – Anna Sewich – 28.56
 
Event 4 – Women's 200 IM (Prelims)
 14th – Natalie Chandler – 2:23.77 (q)
 16th – Nicolette Harvey – 2:25.90 (q)
 18th – Sierra Hermansen – 2:26.93 (q)
 19th – Richanta Pollard – 2:30.97 (q)
 20th – Hanne Graham-Lawver – 2:39.97 (q)
 21st – Lizzy Gilman – 2:42.69 (q)
  
Event 5 – Women's 100 Butterfly (Prelims)
 2nd – Ella Hochstetler – 1:00.20 (q)
 12th – Anna Sewich – 1:06.59 (q)
 17th – Karina Chattopadhyay – 1:08.62 (q)
 19th – Isabel Harden – 1:12.40 (q)
 21st – Carys Walsh – 1:17.85 (q)
 
Event 6 – Women's 200 Backstroke (Prelims)
 4th – Jordyn Grotbo – 2:15.17 (q)
 8th – Natalie Chandler – 2:17.89 (q)
 13th – Richanta Pollard – 2:29.48 (q)
 14th – Maka Chikowero – 2:33.41 (q)
 15th – Clare Cook – 2:34.85 (q)
 16th – Hanne Graham-Lawver – 2:35.46 (q)
 18th – Lizzy Gilman – 2:40.55 (q)