FAYETTEVILLE, AR. – Little Rock turned in an impressive showing in its final dual meet before midseason, earning multiple top finishes and setting a new school record against the Razorbacks on Saturday afternoon.
"It was a really fun meet up at Arkansas. We saw a lot of the things we wanted to see from our team heading into our midseason meet in Indianapolis. We put together several conference-leading times, multiple top-ten performances, a number of lifetime bests, and even capped the meet with a school record in the 400 IM. I'm very excited to see what this group can accomplish in just under two weeks." said head coach Nathan Townsend.
Relays
Little Rock opened the meet strong with a second-place finish in the 200 medley relay, as Amara Addison, Adara Stoddard, Megan Stewart, and Lena Nikolaeva clocked 1:41.58. The Trojans closed the meet with another podium relay, finishing third in the 400 freestyle relay at 3:24.91 behind the efforts of Olivia Elgin, Nikolaeva, Stoddard, and Gabriella O'Neil.
Individual Medley
The 400 IM was a highlight for the Trojans, as they swept the top three spots and broke a school record. Megan Stewart won the event in 4:21.26, setting a new program best. Freshman Lulu Szumski took second in 4:35.19, followed by junior Niamh Carroll in 4:40.76.
Freestyle
Little Rock's sprint and mid-distance swimmers made a strong impact. Olivia Elgin placed second in the 200 freestyle with a 1:48.42, narrowly behind Arkansas' top finisher, while O'Neil added a second-place finish in the 100 free at 51.37. Stewart also placed fifth in the 200 free (1:51.58) as part of her standout meet.
Backstroke
Amara Addison led the Trojans in the backstroke events, finishing second in the 100 back with a 55.32. She also contributed key legs on both the medley and freestyle relays, maintaining consistency across multiple swims. Katherine Rasmussen added a sixth-place finish in the event (58.70).
Breaststroke
The Trojans turned in one of their strongest breaststroke showings of the season. Adara Stoddard placed second in both the 100 (1:02.70) and 200 (2:18.62), while teammate Anna Nishizaki was just behind in the 200 breast (2:18.74). Freshman Paige Pala also earned a top-five finish, clocking 1:04.81 in the 100.
Butterfly
Olivia Elgin captured a win in the 100 butterfly with a 56.33, followed by Addison in second at 57.85 and Nikolaeva in third at 58.65. In the 200 butterfly, freshman Nelanee Fulton led Little Rock with a 2:08.35 to place third overall.
"I think that this meet really showed who the Trojans are. With it being such a fast paced meet I think that collectively we demonstrated the strength and endurance we have. The energy was high and watching people pull out school records, season bests and personal bests in season created such a fun and exciting environment to race in. I'd say that this was such a powerful performance from us against the Razorbacks and it's meets like this that make me proud to be a Trojan. After such a strong duel meet, I cannot wait to see what we can do at midseason." said junior Niamh Carroll.
Up Next
Little Rock will return to competition November 20–22 at the House of Champions Invitational in Indianapolis, Indiana. Prelims begin each morning at 10 a.m. with finals sessions scheduled for 6 p.m.
For the latest information on Little Rock Swimming, check out LRTrojans.com. You can also follow the team on social media at @LittleRockSwimDive on Facebook, Instagram, and X.
Get the latest Trojan news, including the weekly Trojan Report, delivered straight to your inbox by signing up for Little Rock Trojan E-News here.
#LittleRocksTeam | #RockSolid
