OKLAHOMA CITY, Okla. --- Biola got off to a fierce start to the 2015 NAIA National Swimming & Diving Championships, posting five top-8 finishes, breaking one NAIA record and setting a five new school records.
 
"What an incredible first day to our national meet," said Head Coach Eddie Shepard. The athletes this year are faster than they ever have been and our athletes really stepped up to the competition."
 
The day was highlighted by a tremendous effort from the Eagles freshman-senior sister duo, Lisa Tixier and Christine Tixier. Christine broke a 22-year-old record, the longest-standing in the NAIA, in the 200-IM with her 2:02.75 winning effort in the finals of that event. The younger sister was not to be outdone, storming from third place up into second in the final few strokes to out-touch the third-place finisher by :00.02.
 
Both those sisters were part of the other marquee moment for the team on the afternoon. They coupled with Abby Blake and Angela Kirschner to finish second in the 800-freestyle relat (7:39.91) and also set a school record. It is the first time any Biola women's relay team has cracked to top-3 at a national meet.
 
"The women's 800-freestyle relay was my favorite event to watch because it was back-and-forth and so close the entire race until Lisa had an amazing anchor leg of 1:51.10 to pull off the second-place finish."
 
The Eagles got top-16 finishes out of three other relay groups, including a fifth-place finish from Tixier, Tixier, Kirschner and Megan Nerud in the 200-freestyle relay (1:45.95) and two top-10 finishes from the men's side.
 
Edward Campana, Chad LeJeune, Charlie Nanfria and Bretton Smith swam a 1:33.80 to finish ninth in the 200-medley relay and Campana, Scott West, Cort Sharp and Matthew Flodin posted a 6:57.88 to also finish ninth in the men's 800-freestyle relay.
 
The new school records came with Christine Tixier's 200-IM, the three women's relays and the men's 200-medley relay.
 
Freshman Sammy Dammann made a splash of her own with a 15^th-place finish of her own in the 200-IM. Also, Biola's lone diver, Shane Brinson, opened his competition at nationals with a third-place finish in the one-meter dive (215.40).
 
"It was very exciting to have Shane dive so well," said Shepard. "He dove so great and I think he will only get better as he prepares for Saturday's three-meter dive."
 
The Eagles are back in the water on Friday for the 400-IM, 100-butterfly, 200-freestyle, 100-breaststroke, 100-backstroke and 400-medley relay.