Meet Results | GameDay Preview

ST. PAUL, Minn. — With just two meets remaining before the season-ending Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference Championships, Saint Mary's University swimming and diving coach Eric Lindquist knew just how important Saturday's St. Catherine Invitational was.

And so did the Cardinals.

SMU was all business Saturday afternoon, as the Cardinals put together one of their best overall performances of the season.

Joe Tonda (St. Paul, Minn.) posted a second-place finish among his two top-10 finishes, while Evan Lecy (St. Paul, Minn.) chipped in a pair of thirds to lead the SMU men to a fourth-place team finish, while Grace VanBeest (Flossmoor, Ill.) and Anna Smaron (Maple Plain, Minn.) led the Cardinal women to an eighth-place finish.

Tonda clocked a time of 2:11.17 to finish second in the 200 backstroke, while adding a sixth-place time of 1:01.04 in the 100 backstroke. Lecy took third in both diving competitions, totaling 250.85 points in the one-meter and 273:30 in the three-meter, while P.J. Heller (St. Cloud, Minn.) enjoyed a busy afternoon, placing sixth in the 200 freestyle (2:00.75), seventh in the 100 freestyle (54.09) and eighth in the 500 freestyle (5:38.48).

VanBeest posted a fifth-place effort in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:15.76 and added a ninth in the 200 IM (2:30.64) to lead the way for the Cardinal women. Smaron, meanwhile, stopped the clock in 5:27.85 to finish seventh in the 400 IM, and Sarah Jansen (Manitowoc, Wis.) chipped in a sixth in the three-meter diving with a score of 233.95.

The Cardinals are back in action next Friday and Saturday, taking part in the two-day St. Thomas MIAC Preview in St. Paul, Minn.