The Gannon University women's swimming team kicked off its 2025 season with a challenging road meet against Division I Niagara on Saturday. The Golden Knights faced a tough test at the Oxy Aquatics Center, where they were ultimately defeated by the host Purple Eagles, 187-73.

The loss snapped a two-meet win streak for the Golden Knights, who had previously triumphed over RIT (156-138) on October 25 and IUP (142-119) on November 9. 

In the Pool
In the meet against Niagara, several Gannon swimmers turned in strong individual performances:

• The 200 Medley Relay team of Isabella Kling (Cranberry Township, Pa./Seneca Valley), Chinyere Mgbemena (Harare, Zimbabwe/Eaglesvale), Hailey Wills (Cleves, Ohio/Seton), and Lily Cunningham (Lavista, Neb./Papillion-La Vista) finished in fourth place with a time of 1:53.80.
• Roaa Farag (Heliopolis, Egypt/Nermin Ismail) earned a fourth-place finish in the 1,000-yard freestyle, clocking in at 11:24.67.
• In the 200 Freestyle, Madalyn Myers (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional) touched the wall in 2:01.71, securing third place.
• Juliana Romero (Bogotá, Columbia/Colegio pureza de Maria) placed third in the 100 Backstroke with a time of 1:01.54.
• Chinyere Mgbemena (Harare, Zimbabwe/Eaglesvale) also finished fourth in the 100 Breaststroke, recording a time of 1:12.63.
• In the 200 Butterfly, Emily Hedges (Peachtree Corners, Ga./St Pius X Catholic) finished in second place with a time of 2:11.82.
• Alex Pannemann (Clinton Twp., Mich./Chippewa Valley) placed third in the 50 Freestyle with a time of 25.24.
• Farag returned for the 100 Freestyle, where she finished fourth with a time of 55.26.
• Romero followed with a strong second-place finish in the 200 Backstroke, recording a time of 2:11.24.
• Madalyn Myers (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional) continued her strong performance with a second-place finish in the 500 Freestyle, completing the race in 5:21.38.
• Hailey Wills (Cleves, Ohio/Seton) placed third in the 100 Butterfly, finishing with a time of 1:01.71.
• Finally, Emily Hedges (Peachtree Corners, Ga./St Pius X Catholic) capped off her strong day with a runner-up finish in the 200 Individual Medley, clocking in at 2:17.87.

 
Gannon's next competition will be a tri-meet hosted by Oberlin, which will also feature Malone. The Golden Knights look to bounce back and build momentum as they prepare for the 2025 PSAC Championships. Competition is scheduled for Saturday, January 18, at 1:00 PM, inside Carr Pool.