ROCK ISLAND -- The Augustana Vikings men's and women's swimming and diving teams both cruised to a season-opening win over the North Central Cardinals on Saturday. The men were victorious by a score of 153-44, while the women won by a final of 168-24.

"It was a great day of racing to see where we are at very early in the season," said head coach Dan Lloyd. "I am proud of the way our team got up and raced. It was the first step in the journey towards excellence in February."

Between the two teams, the Vikings won 20 of 22 total events. On the women's side, the Vikings' team of Hailey Glasnovich, Ava Kauffeld, Zoe Heiar, and Annabel Anderson won the 200-yard medley relay by nearly 10 seconds. Augie also saw a win in the other relay, with Giselle Koonce, Mara Walker, Caitlin Stoddard, and Kendle Mihm won the 200-yard freestyle with a final time of 1:42.84. 

Elsewhere, Brooke Walker was the winner of the 1,000-yard freestyle with a time of 11:22.23, as well as the 500 in 5:40.42. M. Walker clocked the only sub two-minute time in the 200-yard freestyle to win that race, while Kauffeld grabbed first in the 200-yard IM with a mark of 2:22.09. The Vikings notched the top three spots in the 50, led by Mihm's time of 25.35. Mihm also took the 100 freestyle at 54.96. Heiar won the 100-yard butterfly after clocking 1:02.87 and Glasnovich earned first in the 100 backstroke with a time of 1:01.40. Livy Sholl was the winner in the 100-yard breaststroke after finishing in 1:12.06.

For the men, the Vikings won both of the relay events. Lucas Rettig, Matthew Meyer, Kacper Cebula, and Bjorn Sievert won the 200-yard medley by just .55 over fellow teammates Cesar Castillo, Michael Garland, Hunter Craft, and Tommy Anderson. In the 200-yard free relay, Gavin McCorry, Carter Lavold, Sam Kulisek, and Sievert claimed first with a mark of 1:31.07.

Lavold finished first in the 1,000 free with a time of 10:31.11. Three Vikings finished in the top three in the 200 free, led by McCorry's winning time of 1:48.47. In the 200 IM, Cebula took first with a final time of 2:01.72, while Rettig led a group of three Augie swimmers in the top three of the 100 fly with a time of 54.55. Cebula also secured first in the 100-yard freestyle. Dante Rinaldi was the winner in the 100 back after finishing in 55.24. A pair of freshmen led the way in the 500-yard freestyle, led by Ethan Herstedt in first and Joshua Whalen in second. 

Both the men and women begin the new campaign 1-0. The teams will be back in action on October 25 vs. Monmouth.