ROCHESTER, NY -- The Alfred University men's swimming & diving team opened its 2026-27 season with a 236-62 loss at RIT on Friday night.

"I think after our close meet last year, RIT came into this meet strong," Head Coach Brian Striker said. "Our divers had a great start to their season with some solid scores on the boards. I was happy with some swims, but there is a lot of work to do as we move forward. We are looking to get everyone firing on all cylinders and keep our focus on what lies ahead."

The Saxons opened up the event with a podium finish in the 200-yard medley relay, teamed up with Rihards Kagis (Kekava, Latvia/British School Muscat), Mahmoud Elkady (Cairo, Egypt/Smart City), Carlos Gonzalez (Baja California, Mexico/Unifront), and Calem Striker (Hornell, NY/Hornell). They clocked in at 1:38.46.

Kagis would continue to tow the line for the Saxons in his first collegiate meet, finishing third in the 200-yard fly with a 2:07.56. Striker also followed suit in the 50-yard and 100-yard free, with respective times and finishes of 22.25 for third and 49.25 for second.

Kagis would get second in the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 2:03.17, closely followed behind by Gonzalez at 2:04.05. The junior Mexican would also collect the first individual event win of the season for the Saxons in the 200-IM, with a time of 1:57.85, over five seconds quicker than the second place finisher. 

In the diving well, Jaxson McQuaid (Norwalk, CT/Norwalk) opened up his season with nice scores in both the 3-meter and 1-meter events. He took home a 191.48 in the 3-meter, and a 229.80 in the 1-meter. His 1-meter dive was good enough for second overall in the event.

The Saxons will turn their attention to their home-opener and their first Empire 8 meet of the season against SUNY Brockport on Saturday, October 24 at 1:00 p.m. at the McLane Natatorium.