NEW HAVEN, Conn. (January 19, 2026) – The Golden Bears traveled to Albertus Magnus College for a quad meet versus them, UMass-Dartmouth, and Regis College. The team won eight races, picked a few more best times, and saw Ella Smith earn two new program records in one race, the 1650-yard Freestyle.
Results:
Western New England: 168
Albertus Magnus: 30
Western New England: 139
Albertus Magnus: 105
Western New England: 158
Albertus Magnus: 65
How it Happened:
200 Yard Medley Relay:

• The Golden Bears won the 200 Yard Medley Relay with a time of 2:06.32. Bella Giard, Vicky Stepien, Caitlin Guntly, and Alex Watroba earned the team 11 points.

1650 Yard Freestyle:

• Ella Smith swam the 1650 for the first time this season. Smith swam a time of 18:57.73, which was good enough to win the event by almost 3.5 minutes and set a new program record at WNE. While swimming the event, Smith also broke the 1000 Yard Freestyle time with a time of 11:25.86.

200 Yard Freestyle:

• Alex Watroba placed first in the 200 Yard Freestyle with a time of 2:09.87.
• Olivia Young earned a season-best time, finishing third in the race with a time of 2:16.95.

100 Yard Backstroke:

• Bella Giard then won the 100 Yard Backstroke, finishing with a time of 1:09.50.

100-Yard Breaststroke:

• Vicky Stepien finished fourth in the 100 Yard Breaststroke and led the Golden Bears in that race with a time of 1:23.83, a season-best time.

50 Yard Freestyle:

• The Golden Bears placed second and third in the 50 Free, with Caitlin Guntly earning second with a time of 26.99.
• Bella Giard placed third with a time of 28.49.

100 Yard Freestyle:

• Ella Smith was the first Golden Bear to finish in the 100 Free, placing second with a time of 55.98.

200 Yard Backstroke:

• Alex Watroba won the two-person battle in the 200 Backstroke as Watroba won the event with a time of 2:26.35.

200 Yard Breaststroke:

• Vicky Stepien was the first Golden Bear to finish the race with a season-best time of 3:04.63.

500 Yard Freestyle:

• Olivia Emanuele then placed second in the 500 Free with a time of 6:15.56.

100 Yard Butterfly:

• The Golden Bears placed first and second in the 100 Butterfly, with Caitlin Guntly getting first place with a season-best time of 1:07.88.
• Olivia Young placed second with a season-best time of 1:11.68.

200 Yard IM:

• Ella Smith won the 200 Yard IM once again with a final time of 2:18.01.
• Alex Watroba placed third with a time of 2:28.75. That was Watroba's first time swimming the event this season.

200 Yard Freestyle Relay:

• WNE won the second relay as well, with the team of Ella Smith, Bella Giard, Caitlin Guntly, and Olivia Young getting a season-best time in the relay of 1:50.04.

Up Next on the Schedule:

• The women's swim team ends their regular season meets on Saturday, January 24, 2026, at 1:00 PM as they host Westfield State University on Senior Day.