With two events left to swim on Friday at the Spieker Aquatics Complex, the Cal women’s swimming team was only 16 points behind USC with one of its best events left.
Freshman Elizabeth Pelton and senior Caitlin Leverenz came into the 200 IM with the two top times in the nation.
The two Bears, along with freshman Kelly Naze, would have to finish strong and score a high number of points to stay competitive for the win over USC.
Midway through the race, Pelton was out in front while Leverenz was in third. But Pelton came up short behind USC’s Stina Gardell, clocking in six hundredths of a second behind Gardell, while Leverenz came in third, three tenths of a second behind Gardell.
With one event left to swim, No.1 Trojans clinched themselves against the No. 7 Bears. Cal won eight of the sixteen events, including both relays, against the Trojans, but lost 155-145.
Even with the disappointment of her second loss of the spring season, Pelton, with her relay teammates Rachael Acker, Caroline Piehl and Cindy Tran, picked up 11 more points for the Bears with a first-place finish two-tenths of a second ahead of the Trojans squad.
“I’m just really proud that even though USC had technically won the meet, our girls stepped up and raced really hard,” said Cal associate coach Kristen Cunnane.
Midway through the Friday meet, the Bears held a 78-72 advantage over the Trojans after winning five out of the first eight events.
Pelton made an early contribution with a close win in the 200 free and a win later in the day with the 200 back. Cindy Tran also won the 100 back, while Leverenz claimed the 100 and 200 breast.
The Bears split the weekend’s dual meets with the close loss to the Trojans and a 165-135 win over No. 12 UCLA on Saturday.
Cunnane, however, still believes the team is on the right track leading to the NCAA and Pac-12 Championships.
“I know we competed really well, much better than last weekend, and I’m happy with where we are as a team,” Cunnane said.
“We were a lot better just going into our turns and just knowing what we needed to do in races.”
Against the Bruins, the Bears again won eight events.
This time, they were able to accumulate more points from more second place finishes.
Cal finished first, second and third in the 200 free as Piehl, Camille Cheng and Catherine Breed respectively won the races.
Performances by the three swimmers showed off both the star power and the depth of the Cal squad.
In their next contest against Stanford on Feb. 16, the last dual meet before the tournament season rolls around, the Bears must again work as a team for a win just as they did in that last relay against USC.
“Even though we did well today, we still have to keep bringing it,” Cheng said.
Jessica Lim covers women’s swim. Contact her at [email protected].