Missouri State swept a pair of meets against Southern Illinois on Saturday.
Missouri State Press Release
CARBONDALE, Ill. – Strong performances both in the pool and on the diving board aided the Missouri State swimming and diving team as the squad swept Southern Illinois, Saturday afternoon at Dr. Edward J. Shea Natatorium.
The Missouri state men put up 195 points to Southern Illinois’ 93, while the Missouri State women edged the Salukis 155-143. Six Bears recorded two, individual victories while the team brought in a total of 21 first-place finishes.
“I am very pleased with how we performed today,” head coach Dave Collins said. “Competing yesterday afternoon in Evansville, then turning around for an 11 a.m. start today in Carbondale is not easy, but our team responded well.”
Underclassmen Minki Kang, Thomas Heye, Nicholas Theunissen and Artur Osvath each recorded two victories in the conference matchup, bringing in big points for the men’s team. Kang recorded his victories in the 500 (4:31.67) and 1000 freestyle (9:17.37), while Antonio Thomas followed closely in the events with two second-place finishes.
In the 100 and 200 backstroke, Heye dominated the competition, finishing first in both events. Following Heye in the 200 back, Kevin Douglas and Conner Ripp each touched the wall in 1:53.44 to tie for second-place.
The Bears dominated the 100 breaststroke, finishing 1-2-3-4 in the event. Theunissen led the men with a time of 56.03 seconds, followed by Phillip Willett (56.10), Uldis Tazans (56:35) and Christopher Heye (58.41). Following the event, the Bears – Osvath, Ethan Bresette and Ripp – claimed the top-three spots in the 200 fly.
In the 200 breast, Theunissen, Christopher Heye, Willett and Tazans finished 1-2-3-4, once again controlling a breaststroke event. Later, Osvath picked up his two victories of the day in the 100 fly and 200 IM. In the 100 fly, he swam a time of 48.53. Senior Preston Selby picked up a third place finish while junior Kacper Cwiek finished fourth.
“This weekend was a lot of fun,” Selby said. “It’s a tough road trip to make, but having familiar competition makes the atmosphere exciting. The way we raced really shows how hard we have been working and sets an amazing precedent going into our toughest training cycle.”
Sweeping both relays, the Bears took first in the 200 medley relay in a time of 1:31.47. Missouri State then placed first (A relay, 3:05.62) and second (B relay, 3:05.62) in the 400 free relay to close out the meet.
On the women’s side, Sarah Allegri, Josie Pearson and Alexis Skiniotes were top performers for the squad. Allegri and Pearson brought in two, individual victories while Skiniotes had a dominant performance in the 3-meter diving.
“I’m very proud of what we accomplished this weekend as a team,” Skiniotes said. “We really showed that we are focused and motivated to compete in the Missouri Valley Conference.”
The women kicked things off with a bang when Allegri, Lauren Pavel, Sydney Zupan and Loretta Stelnicki clinched the 200 medley relay in a time of 1:45.58. Following the event, Sophomore Brianna McCullough was the top finisher for the Bears in the 1000 free, finishing third in the race (10:46.07).
Allegri earned her first victory of the day in the 100 back, where she posted a time of 56.56 seconds. Zupan followed the freshman with a second-place finish while senior Quincy Howell grabbed fifth. Later in the 200 back, Allegri and Zupan placed the same as in the 100 back, this time Allegri finishing in 2:02.17 while Zupan recorded a time of 2:02.50.
The women’s squad controlled the 100 breast, as Pavel finished first (1:04.79) followed by Vikte Labanauskaite and Briana Horozewski, who finished third and fourth. Following the 100 breast, Pearson earned her first victory of the day when she clinched the 200 fly (2:06.02). She would go on to win the 200 IM as well.
Stelnicki, a sophomore, had a strong day in the pool, finishing first in the 50 free (24.15) and second in the 100 free (51.68). The Bears earned a second-place finish in the 200 breast as Pavel, followed by Horozewski and Labanauskaite, finished the event in 2:19.18.
The Bears dominated the 100 fly as well, when Zupan, Pearson and freshman Haley Allen grabbed the top-three spots of the event.
The Missouri State divers, led by Skiniotes, found success in both the 1-meter and 3-meter events. Beginning with the 1-meter, Skiniotes finished second with a total of 217.27 points while freshman Payton Smith finished fourth with a career-best, 206.17 points in the event. On the 3-meter, Skiniotes picked up her third victory of the season, racking up a total of 240.30 points. Smith grabbed a third-place finish, posting 203.55 points on the board.
“I am really excited about our performances this weekend,” diving coach Jim Huelskamp said. “Payton’s hard work really showed with a third and fourth-place finish today in her first set of meets against divers in our conference. Alexis had a much needed first-place finish on the 3-meter, which is a board we have not won against SIU in four years. This, partnered with her second-place finish on the 1-meter, really helped contribute to the team win.”
The Bears, who defeated Evansville on the road yesterday evening, finished the weekend with a perfect 4-0 record and remain undefeated against Missouri Valley and Mid-American Conference teams this season.
“Heading home 4-0 on the weekend is a good way to wrap up our fall schedule,” Collins added. “Now it is on to the most intense, and in my opinion, important training cycle of the season. This group is motivated and hungry for success in February and March, so it should be a fun few months.”
The Missouri State swimming and diving team returns home to Hammons Student Center on Saturday, Jan. 14 where the team with celebrate its 11 seniors in the Bears’ final home meet of the season against the Truman State Bulldogs. Senior Day festivities are scheduled to begin at approximately 2 p.m.
