By placing second in the 100-yard backstroke event, California State University, East Bay sophomore swimmer Mariam Lowe helped the Pioneers finish in third place at the Pacific Collegiate Swim and Dive Championships in La Mirada over the weekend.

The championships are a huge determining factor in rankings and deciding the participants that are invited to swim at the National Championships next month.
Lowe placed second in the backstroke event with a time of 56.47, just one and a half seconds behind first place finisher Kjirsten Magnuson, a Loyola Marymount University senior.

Lowe also took third in the 200-yard backstroke and finished with a time of 2:02.49 behind Magnuson (1:59.45) and UC San Diego freshman Julia Toronczak (1:59.14).

“Our 200 [yard] backstroke results were phenomenal,” CSUEB Head Coach Ben Loorz said. “Mariam lowered her own mark from the morning to re-break the record for the third time this year.”

Lowe first broke the school record in December at the University of Nevada Las Vegas Winter Invitational with a time of 2:03.66.
Lowe then set a new school record on Saturday twice, first in the preliminary round with a time of 2:03.03 before she placed third in the final event.
Lowe is the first Pioneer in school history to finish the 200-yard backstroke event in under 2:03.00.

Lowe and the rest of the CSUEB swim team will have a few weeks to get ready for the NCAA Division II National Championships in Indianapolis at the Indiana University Natatorium.

The championships are scheduled for Mar. 11 through Mar. 14 with events held all day.