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Swimming coach Cyndi Gallagher speaks to the team at a practice.

The UCLA swim team was helped by a variety of its members in a 174-74 victory over the University of San Diego on Friday. The win was the undefeated Bruins’ first on the road.

“It felt great to be out there and just be a team,” coach Cyndi Gallagher said. “Everyone swam well.”

The Bruins (3-0, 1-0 Pac-10) thoroughly dominated the Toreros, notching a total of 13 victories. Sophomore Anna Poteete, junior Chiemi Yamamoto and seniors Amy Thurman and Jane Imagane won two events each.

“Some of us practiced for these events for the first time this week,” Yamamoto said. “I think we did a good job, and it was fun.”

Three more of the Bruins’ victories came from seniors Jeana Fuccillo and Isabel Miesner and junior Nicolette Teo. Teo flew by the competition, setting a new meet record in the 200-meter breaststroke.

“She was faster than she’s been in practice,” Gallagher said. “She was just fast and kept the intensity up.

The remaining two Bruin victories came from the 200m medley relay and the 200m free relay. Winning those events allowed the new squad to come together as a unit.

“The relays were the highlight,” freshman Kirsten Byers said. “It feels good to contribute, and relays make more of a team atmosphere.”

The Bruins certainly did compete well as a team. The key to victory against the Toreros was not any single superstar. Instead, it was the Bruins’ ability to swim as a team, with a wide variety of swimmers stepping up to win their events.

“Our team did great,” Yamamoto said. “Everyone was cheering each other on.”

A critical and often difficult task of swimming as a team is integrating the new freshmen into the team as significant contributors. Friday was a golden opportunity to demonstrate the Bruins’ success in this area.

“This was my second dual meet, and I felt much more comfortable,” Byers said. “It’s nice to have one under my belt, so I could just go out there and swim.”

The Bruins will have plenty of time to continue to foster a team atmosphere and fine-tune their techniques during the three-week break before they next swim in competition, against Arizona State and the University of Arizona on Nov. 10 and Nov. 11.