BUFFALO, N.Y. – Cortland diver Auttumn Ayakawa (Honolulu, HI/Coppell (TX)) and the 200-yard freestyle relay team of Cassidy Torres (Brooklyn/High School for Health Professionals & Human Services), Ella Garrow (Peru), Rhianna Lynch (New Hartford) and Erin Galligan (Rochester/Our Lady of Mercy) won titles during the first full day of competition Thursday at the 2026 State University of New York Athletic Conference Women's Swimming and Diving Championship. The championship, which runs through Saturday, is being held at the Burt Flickinger Center on the campus of Erie Community College.
 
Cortland currently leads the 10-team standings with 376 points, followed by Penn St. Behrend (289), Oswego (252), Oneonta (158) and Penn St. Altoona (119) in the top five. Penn St. Behrend, Penn St. Altoona, Pitt Bradford and Delhi are SUNYAC women's swimming and diving affiliate members this year, joining full-time members Cortland, Oswego, Oneonta, New Paltz, Potsdam and Fredonia.
 
Ayakawa won 1-meter diving with an 11-dive score of 399.55 points (400.30 pts. prelims). Alyssa Haberlack (Long Beach) finished second with 387.85 points.
 
The 200-yard freestyle relay team posted a winning time of 1:38.84. In a dramatic ending, Cortland, Penn St. Behrend and Oswego finished close together. The automatic timing system shut down, so backup times had to be used and it wasn't until the results were announced publicly that anyone knew who won. A video review confirmed that Cortland won the race.
 
On Wednesday, during the "first events" portion of the meet, the 200-yard medley relay unit of Tristinye Martinez-Reyes (Queens/Benjamin Cardozo), Garrow, Areiannah Martinez-Reyes (Queens/Benjamin Cardozo) and Lynch finished second (1:50.92) and the 800-yard freestyle team of (Tristinye) Martinez-Reyes, Emma Bouwens (Hilton), Ryann Redmond (Floral Park/Floral Park Memorial) and Morgan Hannon (Hyde Park/Franklin D. Roosevelt) placed third (8:01.26).
 
Julia Bryce (Rochester/School of the Arts) finished second Thursday in the 200-yard IM (2:13.10) and (Tristinye) Martinez-Reyes was third in the event (2:16.06, 2:15.88 prelims). Torres was third in the 50-yard freestyle (24.94).
 
The top three finishers in each event earn All-SUNYAC honors. Winners are first team, runners-up are second team and third-place finishers are third team.
 
Peyton Glor (Tonawanda/Mount Saint Mary Academy) finished fourth in the 200-yard IM (2:16.42), Hannon was fifth in the 500-yard freestyle (5:19.61), Galligan placed fifth in the 50-yard freestyle (25.35) and Sophia Sugrue (Clay/Cicero-North Syracuse) was fifth in 1-meter diving (353.85 points). Maura Nestler (Stormville/John Jay) finished sixth in the 200-yard IM (2:17.37), Redmond was seventh in the 500-yard freestyle (5:24.27), Garrow placed seventh in the 50-yard freestyle (25.44), and Bouwens was eighth in the 500-yard freestyle (5:28.44, 5:25.24 prelims).
 
Lynch won the "B" final in the 50-yard freestyle (25.18) for a ninth-place official finish. Other Red Dragon individuals scoring points on Thursday were Norah Eisnor (Clifton Park/Shenendehowa) in 10th place in the 50-yard freestyle (25.65), Makenna Dietz (Ravena/Ravena-Coeymans-Selkirk) in 10th place in the 200-yard IM (2:19.03), Sydney Crozier (Amherst) in 11th place in the 200-yard IM (2:19.44), and Lillian Accettella (Newtown, CT) in 13th place in the 500-yard freestyle (5:39.68).
 
Teams are allowed to enter "B" relay teams that can score points, but can't finish ahead of any other school's "A" relays. Cortland's scoring "B" relays included:
 
800-yard freestyle relay - Bryce, Glor, Nestler and Accettella - 9th place, 8:15.30 (4th-best time overall)
200-yard freestyle relay - Eisnor, (Areiannah) Martinez-Reyes, (Tristinye) Martinez-Reyes, Crozier - 10th place, 1:41.69 (4th-best time overall)
200-yard medley relay - Bouwens, Torres, Bryce, Galligan - 10th place, 1:49.62 (2nd-best time overall)
(NOTE: The "B" relay beat Cortland's "A" relay; Torres posted a 29.97 breaststroke split in the race)
 
 
Team Scores after Day 1 (first full day) (Feb. 19):
 
1) Cortland - 376
2) Penn St. Behrend - 289
3) Oswego - 252
4) Oneonta - 158
5) Penn St. Altoona - 119
6) New Paltz - 95
7) Potsdam - 86
8) Fredonia - 85
9) Pitt Bradford - 48
10) Delhi - 0