FLAGSTAFF, Ariz. – Freshman Rachel Millet won twice and junior Paige Hunt had the third best three-meter dive in University of Idaho history in winning the event but it wasn't quite enough as Northern Arizona won 155.5-133.5 Saturday in a Western Athletic Conference meet.

Even in the loss, coach Mark Sowa had reason for optimism.

“We never enjoy a loss but if these athletes continue to approach racing like this, I think we are going to surprise some people come February,” he said. “However, we certainly have a lot of work to do.”

Millet continues to be a force in her first season as a Vandal. She won the 100 free and the 200 IM, and swam a leg of the 200 free relay. Savannah Bettis also picked up a victory with her win in the 200 fly, while Erica Anderson, Katie Hendricks, Megan Venlos and Si Jia Pang joined forces to win the 400 free relay.

In traveling to Flagstaff, the Vandals not only had to contend with a strong NAU team but they also were faced with racing at an elevation that is more 4,000 feet higher than their home pool.

“We told the athletes before we got here that this was going to be a tremendous challenge for us,” said Sowa of the 7,000-foot elevation. “We had our work cut out for us.”

Pang added a runner-up finish in the 50 free and third in the 100 free, while Hunt was third in the one-meter event with the fourth-best score in school history – 252.98.

“I continue to be impressed with how competitive this group is,” Sowa said. “We were in every race and we finished up awesome with a very good 400 free relay. Our divers continued to improve with Paige just missing Zones by four-tenths of a point.”