VERMILLION, S.D.—Three more South Dakota team records fell, but it was the performance of sophomore diver Haley Pederson that took center stage in the Coyotes' 13-event dual against Iowa State Friday at the DakotaDome pool. Pederson won the 3-meter contest with a score of 299.85, second to only Greysen Hertting on the Coyotes' top-10 list and an NCAA Zone Diving qualifying mark, the first of her career.
 
"Haley was coming off a really good day at Kansas a week ago, so she's coming along really well," said USD head coach Jason Mahowald. "She kicked out on her gainer for the first time in a meet, and it paid off big. That was probably the biggest story of the night."
 
Biggest, but not the only storyline for the Coyotes making their second home appearance this season. The 400-medley relay team led by freshmen Lucie Anderson and Isabelle Davenport and anchored by veterans Hannah Gupton and Katie Coleman set a new program mark with a time of 4:24.36 in the first event of the meet.
 
That performance set the tone for two other record breakers. Freshman Cassie Ketterling set a new mark in the 200-meter individual medley while senior Morgan Holt improved on her record in the 200 butterfly.
 
Pederson and Holt were among four first-place finishes by South Dakota. In addition to aiding two relays, Coleman won the 50-meter freestyle in 26.95s while Anderson took the 200 backstroke at 2:23.92, nearly a second faster than her time in the season opener two weeks ago.
 
"We swam Iowa State better than I think we ever have," said Mahowald. "They are a Big 12 team and none of us thought we would win the final tally based on who they are, but I didn't think we would be as close as we were. We took more events than I think they thought we would take on them and I think that says quite a bit on where our team is at right now."
 
Iowa State, behind all-Big 12 performer Keely Soellner and freshman Elynn Tan, earned gold in nine of 13 events en route to a 146-97 victory. It was the first meet of the season for the Cyclones, who placed fourth of five teams at the Big 12 championship meet last season.
 
Ketterling's time of 2:24.19 in the 200 IM was seven tenths of a second faster than USD teammate Sabrina Sabadeanu swam in the season opener, but perhaps more impressive was that Ketterling improved on her own time by nearly four seconds!
 
"She is just a freshman and she is starting to figure it out," said Mahowald. "The 200 is one of her best events, and she is also really good at the 400 IM, but she swam at Kansas last week and had a good swim there. We don't know what we're going to do for a third event yet for her, but she has a lot of potential."
 
Holt clocked in at 2:23.15 in the 200 butterfly after setting the previous mark at 2:24.73 two weeks ago. Anderson improved by nearly a second in the 200 back, winning with a time of 2:23.92.
 
Pederson and senior Sarah Schank went 1-2 in the 3-meter. Schank scored a season-best 277.88 in finishing second and took third in the 1-meter with a score of 242.55. Pederson was fourth in the lower board at 227.33.
 
"Overall, the way the team is coming together and supporting each other, I think we just keep making more and more strides," said Mahowald. "They just kept fighting, weren't intimidated, came out and swam well and I think that's going to set us up really well when we face teams that put us in a tough meet."
 
South Dakota next hosts the USD Quad-Duals in Sioux Falls Nov. 2-3.