BRIDGEPORT, West Virginia - With the long offseason preparations finally over, the Salem swimming team faced off with live competition for the first time in the 2025-2026 season today at The Bridge Sports Complex. The Tigers hosted a group of regional rivals in a meet  that included some of the best swimmers in the state. Both the men's and women's squads competed for the Tigers with the men finishing first, and the women finishing third overall. 

For the men's squad, there were a few key performances. For example, the Tigers won the 400 yard Freestyle relay with a team of Alvaro Arruga Moreno, Kelvin Caesar, Elias Maurer, and Marko Zivojinovic, and they won the  500 yard freestyle relay with Fulop Zsombor, Zivojinovic, Maurer, and Moreno. 

On the women's side, the Tigers got strong performances as well such as a 2nd place finish in the 800 yard freestyle relay from a team of Keri Brooks, Lucy Bramwell, Courtney Repinz, and Iris Oudshoorn. Cheyanne Rohde, Kara Wicht, and Emma Donnely also had solid days in the water for the Tigers. 

With the season opener in the books, the Tigers are now set to compete in the West Virginia State Games hosted by West Virginia University on October 4th in Morgantown, West Virginia.