MIDLAND, Texas (November 9, 2025) – It was a fun Senior Day as The University of Texas Permian Basin men's and women's swimming teams hosted Southwestern University on Saturday, November 8, at COM Aquatics. In the end, the UTPB men's team won 178-59 while the women fell 150-85. In addition, the UTPB men's and women's teams combined to set 12 new personal bests.

The meet started off with UTPB "A" team winning the mixed 200 medley relay with a time of 1:42.18.

UTPB then earned the win in each of the first three events in the men's competition, and won 11 of 13 events overall.

Niklas Heelein and Owen Putnam finished back-to-back in first and second place in the 1000 freestyle with times of 10:25.35 and 10:30.45, respectively.

UTPB took each of the top-four spots in the 200 freestyle, led by Sean Greene in first place with a time of 1:43.26.

Cooper Workman and Colin Doyle finished first and second in the 100 backstroke with times of 52.49 seconds and 54:42 seconds, respectively.

In the 50 freestyle, Brannan Espericueta finished first with a time of 21.96 seconds.

Heelein earned his second win of the day with a time of 47.97 seconds in the 100 freestyle, and Greene earned his second win of the day with a personal best time of 1:58.35 in the 200 backstroke.

A nail-biting ending broke out in the 200 breaststroke as David Charles moved up from second place to first place during the final 50 yards to out-touch teammate Peyton Beard 2.18.34 to 2:18.99. It was a new personal best for Charles.

UTPB went 1-2-3 in the 500 freestyle as after a great start to the race by Workman, teammate Chase Alderman (5:09.27) passed Workman (5:10.04) during the final 50 yards to take first place. Addison Richardson finished third at 5:11.80.

UTPB again took the top-three spots, this time in the 100 butterfly with Nico Turner finishing first with a personal best of 52.56 seconds, Zane Garner taking second in 54.35 seconds and Tommy Betancour finishing third at 54.55 seconds. It was the first of two personal bests in the meet for Turner, who also swam a time of 1:00.23 to take second place in the 100 breaststroke.

Doyle would win the 200 IM with a time of 2:00.69 while Heelein (2:03.48) added a third-place finish to his senior day after taking home two first-place finishes earlier in the day.

In the final event of the day, the 400 freestyle relay, the UTPB "B" team outpaced the rest of the field with a time of 3:10.43, while the UTPB "A" team (3:14.75) just out-touched the SWU "A" team (3:15.61) to take second place.

On the women's side of the meet, Ava McCormack finished second in the 200 freestyle with a time of 2:02.13, Rowan McWhorter was second in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 1:11.62, and Avery Momotiuk was second in the 50 freestyle at 25.57 seconds.

Over the next three races, all three ladies moved up from finishing second in their first race of the meet to taking first place in their next race. McWhorter earned the win with a time of 56.12 seconds in the 100 freestyle. McCormack moved up from second place to first place over the final 50 yards to win the 200 backstroke with a time of 2:14.55. Momotiuk took home with win in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:35.60.

In the final two individual events, McWhorter won her second race in a row with a strong finish to take first place in the 100 butterfly at 1:01.64, and Momotiuk did the same with a time of 2:19.07 to win the 200 IM.

Gia Delgado set three personal bests for the Falcons, doing so in the 1000 freestyle (13:05.35), 500 freestyle (6:16.91) and the 100 freestyle (1:06.08 during relay).
 
Men's Top-Three Finishes:
1000 freestyle – first place – Niklas Heelein – 10:25.35
1000 freestyle – second place – Owen Putnam – 10:30.45
200 freestyle – first place – Sean Greene – 1:43.26
200 freestyle – second place – Peyton Beard – 1:50.14
200 freestyle – third place – Massimo Alarcon – 1:57.36
100 backstroke – first place – Cooper Workman – 52.49
100 backstroke – second place – Colin Doyle – 54.42
100 breaststroke – second place – Nico Turner – 1:00.23
100 breaststroke – third place – Kell Frazier – 1:00.60
200 butterfly – second place – Addison Richardson – 2:13.03
50 freestyle – first place – Brannan Espericueta – 21.96
50 freestyle – third place – Zane Garner – 22.56
100 freestyle – first place – Niklas Heelein – 47.97
100 freestyle – second place – Kell Frazier – 48.46
100 freestyle – third place – Logan Fultz – 49.27
200 backstroke – first place – Sean Greene – 1:58.35
200 breaststroke – first place – David Charles – 2:18.34
200 breaststroke – second place – Peyton Beard – 2:18.99
500 freestyle – first place – Chase Alderman – 5:09.27
500 freestyle – second place – Cooper Workman – 5:10.04
500 freestyle – third place – Addison Richardson – 5:11.80
100 butterfly – first place – Nico Turner – 52.56
100 butterfly – second place – Zane Garner – 54.35
100 butterfly – third place – Tommy Betancour – 54.55
200 IM – first place – Colin Doyle – 2:00.69
200 IM – third place – Niklas Heelein – 2:03.48
400 freestyle relay – first place – UTPB "B" team – 3:10:43
400 freestyle relay – second place – UTPB "A" team – 3:14.75
 
Women's Top-Three Finishes:
1000 freestyle – third place – Gia Delgado – 13:05.35
200 freestyle – second place – Ava McCormack – 2:02.13
100 backstroke – second place – Lu-Lu Van Winkle – 1:12.76
100 backstroke – third place – Alondra Ortiz – 1:20.06
100 breaststroke – second place – Rowan McWhorter – 1:11.62
50 freestyle – second place – Avery Momotiuk – 25.57
100 freestyle – first place – Rowan McWhorter – 56.12
200 backstroke – first place – Ava McCormack – 2:14.55
200 breaststroke – first place – Avery Momotiuk – 2:35.60
100 butterfly – first place – Rowan McWhorter – 1:01.64
200 IM – first place – Avery Momotiuk – 2:19.07
400 freestyle relay – second place – UTPB "A" team – 3:51.27
 
Senior Day Recap:
Carlos Baca is a four-year team member from El Paso, Texas. His favorite memory at UTPB is making amazing friends and the memories made with swim team in and out of the pool. A kinesiology major, Carlos' plans after graduation are to start his own personal training program and hopefully open up his own gyms down the line.

Erika Hajduk is a three-year team member from San Antonio, Texas. Her favorite memories from her time at UTPB are watching the eclipse, joining the swim team out of nowhere in 2024 and immediately going on a travel meet. A human performance major, Erika's plans after graduation are to become an assistant swim coach, keep going to school for psychology, and eventually become a sports psychologist.

Niklas Heelein is a five-year team member from Eschborn, Germany. His favorite memory at UTPB is getting to see more of the US by traveling to competitions with the team. A biology pre-med major, Nik's plans after graduation are to try to go to med school and become a surgeon.

Alondra Ortiz is a four-year team member from Chihuahua, Mexico. When asked about her favorite memories at UTPB, Alondra said, "Some of my favorite memories at UTPB were made with my friends, from traveling for meets and karaoke night to celebrating unforgettable moments like winning homecoming queen, the Freddy's Awards, and representing UTPB at the UT System. I'll always cherish the amazing people I met along the way, like sisters in the sorority, the time spent giving back through Students in Philanthropy, and the work at the Success Center. Each experience made my time at UTPB truly special and filled with memories I'll treasure forever." A finance major, Alondra has been a member of the Dean's List and President's List at UTPB, and after graduation she plans to pursue a Master's in accounting and work at a bank or managing finance in the oil field.

Owen Putnam is a four-year team member and Senior Captain from Houston, Texas. His favorite memory at UTPB is eating with the team. He says he "loves our team atmosphere and that every experience is memorable." A business management major, Owen's plans after graduation are to stay coaching swim, try to get the sport more noticeable and hopefully gain a following.

Owen Ward is a four-year team member from Conroe, Texas. He says his favorite memories at UTPB are becoming so close with the men's team and the discovery over Samuel.  A biology major who also minors in chemistry, Owen's plans after graduation are to get into dental school and to later become an Orthodontist.
 
Next Up
After competing at Trinity University last weekend, UTPB will end the month back at Trinity for the Tiger Invitational from November 21-23 in San Antonio, Texas.