The Georgia Southern University Swimming and Diving team opened the New Year and the spring portion of its schedule claiming five top three finishes in a tough dual meet on Saturday.

The event in Fort Myers, Fla. included conference top opponents Florida Gulf Coast University and Liberty University; last year’s championship number one and two, respectively, as well as North Dakota University.

The Eagles’ focus this weekend was aimed at preparing for the CCSA Championships. “We are looking forward to getting into the race prep phase of our season. We have dual meets five consecutive weekends and our focus is to prepare and fine-tune our performances leading into the CCSA Championships in February,” head coach Nathan Kellogg said.

Sophomore Amber Juncker’s performance highlighted the day as she came in second in the 500 Free (5:11.95) as well as third in the 1000 Free with a time of 10:35.73.

Junior Kristen Bates 100 Breast, (1:06.41), sophomore Elaina Lanson (50 Free, 24.27) and freshman Lauren Campbell (200 Fly, 2:11.97) all finished third in their respective events. Senior Lindsay Mullican finished closely behind Campbell and came in fifth with a time of 2:14.50.

The Eagles 200 Free Relay Team with freshman Christina Moran, sophomore Megan Heller, freshman Kylee Parsons and Lanson placed fourth in 1:39.96, while the 200 Medley Relay Team consisting of Moran, Bates, Heller and Lanson finished fifth with a time of 1:49.70.

Junior diver Amanda Macchio rounded up a solid Eagle performance with a fifth place finish and a score of 228.85 from the three-meter platform.

The swimming and diving team have four more dual meets to prepare for the CCSA Championships.

The Eagles will host Darton College at the RAC Aquatics Center on Jan. 12.