ST. JOSEPH, MINN. – With a strong start to the season, the College of St. Benedict Swim and Diving Team will host St. Olaf College at 5 pm on Friday, Nov. 4 at the Warner Palaestra Pool at Saint John's in Collegeville, Minn.

To this point, the CSB Swim and Diving Team is coming off three competitions, including the St. Kate's Pentathlon on Oct. 15 which was followed by duals with St. Cloud State University in Collegeville, Minn., on Oct. 28 at Macalester College in St. Paul, on Oct. 29. After hosting St. Olaf in a dual, CSB will also serve as host for the St. Kate's/Hamline Triangular on Nov. 11 a the Warner Palaestra Poll.
 
Against St. Olaf, the Bennies have split the last two duals, winning by a 135-106 margin in 2020 but falling a year ago on Nov. 6 by a 169-130 total in Northfield, Minn.

Here is a breakdown of the competition so far.

CSB at St. Kate's Pentathlon
Junior Lindsay Smutka had four top-six finishes to finish fifth in overall points with 60 at the St. Kate's Pentathlon on Oct. 15 in St. Paul, Minn.  First year standout Rachel Schlueter scored in four events and ranked eighth with 31 points while senior Molly Johanson was 13^th with 28 total points. First year Lauren Sitzman was 18^th with 11 points with junior Emi Wagner, 22^nd with nine points and senior Mads Slavik, 23^rd with seven points. Smutka was fifth in the 100 butterfly (1:02.84) and 100 backstroke (1:02.73) as well as the 100 IM (1:05.39) with a sixth place finish in the 100 freestyle (57.15).  

CSB vs St. Cloud State
With a title and 11 top-four finishes, the College of Saint Benedict Swimming and Diving Team had another solid performance as they hosted Division II St. Cloud State at the Warner Palaestra Pool at Saint John's on Oct. 28. The Bennies had an individual title from Emi Wagner, who won the 50 freestyle in 25.50. Freshman Rachel Schlueter had a second place finish in the 100 freestyle in 56.59 while Fiona Rosko was second in the 200 back in 2:32.35 to highlight the performances.

Macalester vs CSB Dual
Molly Johanson, Lindsay Smutka, and Emi Wagner both won titles to highlight the performance of the College of Saint Benedict Swimming and Diving Team at a dual with Macalester on Oct. 29 in St. Paul, Minn. In total, Macalester defeated St. Ben's, 147-95, but the Bennies put together a series of standout efforts.

For the second straight meet, junior Emi Wagner picked up a win in the 50 freestyle as she clocked a 25.40 in winning the race. Junior Lindsay Smutka won the 100 backstroke with a 1:01.32 clocking while finishing third in 200 free in 2:07.75. Senior Molly Johanson had the other victory for the Bennies as she captured the 400 IM in 4:54.38. Johanson also clocked 11:32.36 in claiming second in the 1000 free.

In the relays, CSB was second in the 200 medley relay, which was anchored by Wagner. Aside from Wagner, the 200-medley relay which had a 1:55.16 time, included Fiona Rosko, Mads Slavik and Ellie Blattner. Additionally, CSB was second in the 400 free relay as Wagner also anchored that race. She was joined by Smutka, Hannah Tatge and Rachel Schlueter in clocking 4:00.45.

On the day, the Bennies had 14 top-three finishes, two titles and 33 placings in the top five. CSB also had competitors in diving for the first time. Mikayla Haskamp was third in the 1-meter board with 201.50 points while Sabrina Buffetta was fourth in the 1-meter board with 184.05 and fourth on the 3-meter board with 157.95 points.

Mandy Wolvert begins 4^th season at CSB
Mandy Wolvert enters in her fourth season as head coach in 2022-23. Along with three seasons as the team's head coach, Wolvert also has six seasons as the team's assistant under her belt. She served as an assistant from 2012-15 and then again from 2016-19. As an assistant, Wolvert helped coach the team to four All-MIAC honors in 2018-19 - the most for the program since 2012-13. In her first three seasons as assistant coach, Saint Benedict finished in the top five each year at the MIAC Championships, including fourth-place finishes in 2013 and 2014. Wolvert is a 2000 graduate of St. Cloud State where she graduated with a bachelor's degree in mass communications. She also swam for the Huskies for three years from 1996-99.