CHARLOTTE, N.C. - After over a month-long hiatus from competition Queens men's and women's swimming returned to Curry Arena for their first meet of the new year, hosting Tennessee and Virginia Tech. Both sides put forth strong efforts, highlighted by Matej Dusa who broke a pool record in the 50 freestyle, touching the wall at 19.49.

While three teams competed in the meet, Tennessee counted as an exhibition which left Queens and Virginia Tech to face off head-to-head. The Hokies' men finished ahead, 146-108, as did the women, 151-103.

On the women's side, Danielle Melilli picked up right where she left off, bringing home four top-three finishes on the day. She swam the beginning leg of the 200 free relay which took first at 23.53. She swapped and would swim the final leg of the 200 medley relay, helping her squad tie for second in the event. She continued her success in freestyle events, taking third in both the 50 (23.61) and the 100 (51.95.)

Monica Gumina racked up a nice amount of points for the Royals, dashing to an impressive four top-two finishes. She followed Melilli in the 200 free relay, swimming the second leg at 23.17 in their first-place finish. She also earned the top spot in the 100 butterfly, hitting the pad at 56.56. She swam the third leg of the second-place finshing 200 medley relay squad at 25.17 to kick off the meet. Her other speedy finish was in the 200 freestyle (1:50.71).

Annika Huber swam with a vengeance today, placing first in three of the four events she competed in. She took the top spot in both the 100 breast (1:04.03) and the 200 breast (2:18.17). She would also take first in the 200 yard IM, coming in at 2:08.70. Much like the previous to, Huber also swam a leg of the 200 medley relay, finshing the 200 breast at 29.17.

On the men's side, Dusa kicked off the new year without missing a beat, swimming in four events and took both first and second place twice throughout those events. Aside from his record-breaking performance in the 50 free, he also contributed to a first-place finish in the 200 free relay, swimming the initial leg at 19.51. He also contributed to a second-place finish in the 200 medley relay, swimming the final leg at 19.17, while also taking second in the 100 free (43.95).

Alexander Bauch continues to find success in the pool as well, earning three top-three finishes. He placed second in the 100 fly, coming in at 50.08, while also helping his quartet of the 200 medley relay finish second, completing his leg via backstroke at 23.17. He would also earn a third-place finish in the 100 back, touching the wall at 49.20.

Alex Kunert also made nice contributions for the Royals today. He'd place first in the 200 fly, finshing at 1:49.48, and would also contribute to the first-place finish in the 200 free relay, swimming the second leg at 20.03. He also competed in the 200 medley relay, completing the third leg at 21.58.

"It was great having Olympic Coaches Matt Kredich of Tennessee and Sergio Lopez of Virginia Tech" said head coach Jeff Dugdale. "Both teams are ranked in the top 10 of the NCAA and serve as a great bench mark of where we aspire to be as a DI program".

Events Won

• Women's 100 Yard Breaststroke (Annika Huber, 1:04.03)
• Men's 200 Yard Butterfly (Alex Kunert, 1:49.48)
• Men's 50 Yard Freestyle (Matej Dusa, 19.49)
• Women's 200 Yard Breaststroke (Annika Huber, 2:18.17)
• Women's 100 Yard Butterfly (Monica Gumina, 56.56)
• Women's 200 Yard IM (2:08.70)
• Men's 200 Yard IM (Jan Delkeskamp, 1:53.46)
• Women's 200 Yard Free Relay (Melilli/Gumina/Heck/Johnson, 1:35.14)
• Men's 200 Yard Free Relay (Dusa/Kunert/Meszaros/Gregory, 1:20.07)

The Royals are back in action on Friday, January 13 as they will celebrate senior day. Queens will host Lenoir-Rhyne at 4PM inside Curry Arena.