FEDERAL WAY, Wash. - The California women's swimming & diving team extended its lead at the 2024 Pac-12 Championships on Thursday, piling up points with three finalists in both freestyle events - including a pair of runner-up finishes at Weyerhaueser King County Aquatic Center.

Graduate students Mia Motekaitis (4:37.77) and Rachel Klinker (4:37.89) finished third and fourth, respectively, in the 500-yard freestyle with times that are now eighth and ninth, respectively, all-time at Cal. Freshman Kathryn Hazle also advanced to the finals of the event and placed eighth (4:47.16).

In the 50 free, junior Stephanie Akakabota recorded the 10^th-best time ever at Cal at 22.02 to finish second while senior Isabelle Stadden (22.29) was fifth and graduate student Eloise Riley placed seventh (22.32).

Junior Leah Polonsky, who last year won the Pac-12 title in both the 200 and 400 individual medley, placed second in the 200 IM but still reeled off the eighth-fastest time in the nation this season at 1:53.58. That mark is also tied for sixth on Cal's all-time list.

The Bears' 200 freestyle relay team of Riley, Akakabota, junior McKenna Stone and Stadden placed second with a season-best time of 1:27.75.

Cal enters the third day of the meet in the lead with 479 points followed by USC at 401 points and Stanford at 398.

A stacked program awaits Friday with five individual events as well as the 400 medley relay. Two of Friday's races - the 100 backstroke (Stadden) and 100 butterfly (Mia Kragh) - feature No. 1 seeds from Cal.