2024 House of Champions Invite
- November 21-23, 2024
- IU Natatorium, Indianapolis, IN
- Short Course Yards
- Results on Meet Mobile “20th House of Champions Invitational”
Women’s Scores after Day 1
1. Marshall – 369.5
2. Missouri State – 354
3. Little Rock – 285
4. Milwaukee – 279
5. UIC – 277
6. Lynn – 187.5
7. North Texas – 153
8. IU Indianapolis – 140
9. Missouri-St. Louis – 90
10. Butler – 71
11. Lewis – 51
12. Saint Louis – 49
13. Quincy – 18
Men’s Scores after Day 1
1. IU Indianapolis – 419.5
2. Missouri State – 346.5
3. Lewis – 306.5
4. Milwaukee – 194
5. Lynn – 189
6. UIC – 187
7. Saint Louis – 183.5
8. Missouri-St. Louis – 158
9. Missouri S&T – 129.5
10. Quincy – 122.5
11. Northern Kentucky – 37
Recap – IU Indianapolis
INDIANAPOLIS – The IU Indianapolis men’s and women’s swim and dive teams closed out day one of the annual House of Champions invite Thursday evening (Nov. 21) with the men sitting atop the leaderboard with Lewis University at 306.5 points apiece and the women earning 114 points which puts them eighth place among 13 teams.
Thursday’s finals session got underway with the 200 yard free relays, where both the men’s and women’s teams earned significant points.
In the first individual final of the session, Addy Hirsbrunner picked up points, finishing in the top half of the 50 back. For the men, four swimmers—David Niemiec (sixth), Jack Gallob (seventh), Keiran Rahmaan (eleventh) and Ben Kimmel (sixteenth)—earned points.
The Jaguars earned their first individual title of the invite when Emmaleigh Zietlow dominated the 500 free. On the men’s side, the trio of Nathan Rariden, William Gorman and Youseff Magdy finished in the top eight. Michael Esdon and Luke Dibley also earned points with their solid swims.
In the 200 yard individual medley, six swimmers—five men and one woman—racked up points.
The final individual race of the evening—the 50 free—saw four Jaguars earn tallies.
Like the beginning of the session, the night ended with an intense relay—the 400 medley. Both the men’s and women’s relay teams earned 24 points with seventh-place finishes.
Swimming resumes tomorrow at 10:00 a.m. with the prelims. Diving will pick up at 12:30 p.m. and day two will again conclude with the finals starting at 5:30 p.m.
Recap – Missouri St
INDIANAPOLIS – Missouri State men’s and women’s swimming & diving teams both sit in second after the first day of the 20th House of Champions Invitational. The Bears only trail Marshall out of the 13-team field of women’s squads while the men’s team only trails host IU Indianapolis out of an 11-team field.
Fifth-year swimmer Samantha Roemer won Missouri State’s first gold medal of the weekend in the 200-yard individual medley in dominant fashion. Roemer started the day by taking the top spot in the prelims (2:00.58), only to keep her position above all with a finals time of 2:00.64. The two times she put up are the second and third fastest 200 IM times in Missouri State history. Roemer now owns four of the top 10 Bears times in the event.
Lana Janson (2:03.58) and Olivia Sala (2:03.81) joined Roemer in the A Final coming in fifth and sixth, respectively.
MoState saw notable improvements in its evening finals swims compared to its prelim times. Caitlyn Friebe took bronze in the 50-yard backstroke final (25.24) after finishing fifth in the prelims of the event with a time of 25.46.
Sophia Coleta improved by more than three seconds in the 500-yard freestyle finals, taking a time of 4:52.79 for third place after coming in at 4:56.23 in the prelims. Coleta improved on her already-leading Missouri Valley Conference time. Sophomore Lindsey Hervey finished seventh in the A Final of the 500 free (5:00.38).
The quartet of Friebe, Cabrini Johnson, Roemer and Janson closed opening night with a win in the 400-yard medley relay (3:40.51), holding off North Texas (3:40.97) by less than half a second.
In diving, Maggie Arceneaux paced the Bears with a fifth-place score of 233.55 in the 3-meter dive final.
The men’s team saw similar success in Thursday’s events. Senior Reese Hodgins bested the top MVC time in the 500-yard freestyle entering the weekend with a silver medal performance (4:26.84). His finals time was almost four seconds faster than his prelim tally (4:30.83), which was fifth-fastest.
Jack Grandy won his first career individual event medal with a third-place finish in the 200-yard individual medley (1:47.60). Gonzalo Ruiz (1:47.64) just missed the podium by .04 seconds in his first major midseason meet appearance.
The quartet of Ruiz, Luigi Maciel da Silva, Simeon Sabev and Lucas Chadwell also took home the 400-yard medley relay win with the sixth-fastest time in the event in Bears history (3:12.40). Missouri State held off Lewis University (3:12.76) for the win.
In diving, Storm Opdahl also came in fifth place in the 3-meter dive (317.75).
The House of Champions Invitational continues Friday and Saturday with competition in 10 events slated for day two. Swimming prelims will start at 9:00 a.m followed by diving prelims at 11:30 a.m. The finals for both swimming & diving commence at 4:30 p.m.
Recap – Marshall
MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The Marshall University Swimming and Diving team holds nearly a 30-point at the conclusion of day one at the House of Champions in Indianapolis.
“Really proud of how our team competed today,” Herd Swimming and Diving Head Coach Ian Walsh said. “We did a great job of getting the job done in the morning and getting ourselves several A/B/C Final swims.”
The Herd picked up three victories on the day with Grace Kelsheimer taking 1m Diving (278.05), Kseniia Luniushina winning the 50 Freestyle (22.82) and Luniushina, Madeline Hart, Parker Lynch, Audrey West (1:32.07) taking the 200 Freestyle Relay.
The team’s 200 Free Relay Performance marked the fourth-fastest time in program history with Luniushina’s prelim time of 22.72 in the 50 Free ranking second all-time and Hart’s time of 23.04 ranking fourth in the event.
“We had a lot of gutsy performances tonight,” Walsh commented. “Our 200 Free Relay (Luniushina, Hart, Lynch, West) is now fourth all-time in program history. We had several lifetime best performances. Kseniia’s 50 Free (22.72) stands second all-time and Madeline’s 50 Free (23.04) is tied for fourth all-time. Nina also had a lifetime best performance in the 50 Free (23.80). Grace had a consistent scoring through preliminaries and ended up winning the 1m Final by over 30 points. Our 400 Medley Relay is now third all-time in program history with Kseniia, Paige, Madeline and Audrey.”
Marshall also recorded the third fastest time in program history in the 400 Medley Relay at 3:41.46 by Luniushina, Paige Banton, Hart and West.
Molly Warner recorded a third-place finish in the 200 Individual Medley (2:03.25) with Luniushina also taking in the 50 Backstroke (25.13).
“It takes an entire scoring roster to win at the end of the year and it’s been great to see our team embracing the spirit of competition here. We look forward to another great session of competition.”
Recap – Little Rock
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – The Trojans kicked off day one of the House of Champions in spectacular fashion, breaking the school record in the team diving event. With over 10 new top-10 all-time performances across individual events, the team showcased their depth and determination. With two days left in this thrilling three-day meet, the Trojans are just getting started.
200 Free Relay
The Trojans were propelled by sophomore Elena Nikolaeva, who delivered a stellar performance with a 23.19, marking the fourth-fastest time in program history to kick off the race. Jaelle Carlson and Erma Duratovic maintained the lead against fierce competition, setting up senior Lauren Pieniazkiewicz for an electrifying finish. Pieniazkiewicz blazed through the anchor leg with a remarkable 22.74, securing the team’s victory with a final time of 1:33.43.
50 Back
The first individual event of the evening, the 50 backstroke, saw freshman Beatriz Comini Romero shine from the outside lane, claiming 2nd place in the B final with an impressive time of 26.01. Caitlin Romprey also delivered a strong performance, securing 6th place with a time of 26.30.
500 Free
This event was nothing short of thrilling. During the morning session, 5th-year Gabby O’Neil broke the five-minute barrier with a 4:59.50, placing her 3rd on the program’s all-time performers list in the 500 freestyle. She went on to secure 8th place in the A final. Sophomore Olivia Elgin had a phenomenal showing in the B final, swimming a lifetime best of 5:00.76, which earned her the 5th spot on the all-time performers list. Meanwhile, freshman Carol Heinz impressed at her first collegiate mid season meet, claiming 4th on the all-time list with a 5:00.14 in the C final.
200 IM
Senior Gillian Boggs led the Trojans in the B final, delivering an exciting performance to secure 2nd place with a season-best time of 2:04.30. Freshman Anna Nishikazi made her finals debut, finishing 6th in the C final with a strong 2:06.63, capping off the IM event for the Trojans.
50 Freestyle
The Trojans dominated the finals of the 50 freestyle, showcasing their depth and talent across multiple heats. In the C final, 5th-year Cheryl Poulsen and Erma Duratovic kicked things off with times of 23.80 and 23.70, respectively. Duratovic’s morning swim of 23.60 placed her 10th in the all time performers list, with O’neil, who exhibitioned the event and swam a 23.60 to take 9th on the all-time list.
The A final was a showcase of Trojan power, with three athletes in contention. Nikolaeva delivered a solid performance with a 23.47, while senior Pieniazkiewicz continued to lower her lifetime best, clocking a 23.28 to secure a spot in the program’s top 5 all-time performers.
Senior Carlson, in her signature style, shaved time off her morning swim to nearly reach the school record, touching in 22.73 to become 2nd all-time in program history. She capped off the night by claiming 3rd place in the A final, concluding an exciting evening of individual events for the Trojans.
Diving
The action was electric on the diving boards as divers Kyra Apodaca, Delaney Nickles, and Tatum Malatin kicked off the morning with a new team event record of 256.85 points, setting the stage for an exciting day.
The Trojan women continued their strong showing in the individual events, starting with the 1-meter board. Nickles and Malatin finished 11th and 15th, respectively. Apodaca, after a strong performance in the prelims, advanced to the A final, where she secured 8th place with 217 points, wrapping up the diving events for day one.
400 Medley Relay
The Trojans made a strong push in the final event of the evening, shaving off 6 seconds to claim 5th place. Romprey led the charge with a season-best time of 56.31, setting the tone for the race. Adara Stoddard and Pieniazkiewicz worked tirelessly to maintain their positions, while Carlson brought it home with a blazing 49.56, securing the finish and holding onto their spot.
Little Rock currently sits in 3rd place after day one of competition at the House of Champions Invite. As they head into day two, Little Rock will aim to extend their lead with a full lineup of events: the 400 IM, 100 fly, 200 free, 100 breast, 100 back, and 3-meter board. The day will also feature two relays—the 200 medley and the 800 freestyle—providing more opportunities for the team to make their mark
Recap – Milwaukee
INDIANAPOLIS, IND.- The Milwaukee swimming and diving team competed in the first day of IU Indy’s House of Champions Invitational on Thursday. After day one, the women sit in fourth place with a total of 210 points, while the men are tied for sixth with 158 points, led by a school-record performance by the 200 freestyle relay team.
Events held on day one included the 200 freestyle relay, 400 medley relay, 50 backstroke, 500 freestyle, 200 individual medley, 50 freestyle, 1m dive (women), and 3m dive (men). Following the conclusion of the morning preliminaries, Milwaukee had a total of 24 athletes qualify for the finals, with at least one in every event.
The 200 freestyle relay squad of Charlie House, Caleb Carlisle, Jackson Ahrens, and Ben Lorenz grabbed second place with a time of 1:19.88, highlighting the way as the top finish on the men’s side. With that clocking, the team topped the former school mark of 1:20.45 set last season (House, Jensen, Ahrens, Lorenz). On the women’s side, Julie Rebek placed runner-up to lead the way to mark the two podium finishes for MKE on the evening.
In both the 200 freestyle and 400 medley relays, the Milwaukee women just missed the podium, finishing fourth on the day.
Mara Freeman had a strong showing in the 50 backstroke, touching the wall in 25.57 for a fourth-place finish. Carly Plate added a seventh-place performance (25.92) in the event as well.
In the 200 individual medley, Erika Thomas had the best finish, placing seventh while finishing the event in 2:04.02. Jay Jensen took eighth-place in the event on the men’s side, reaching the end in 1:50.93.
The best individual finish on the men’s side came from Charlie House in the 50 freestyle, who used a time of 20.41 to grab the seventh spot in the finals.
On the diving boards, Rebek turned in an impressive second-place finish in the 1m with 247.45 points. Kristina Wittmann also competed in the finals, ending up in sixth putting up a score 233.20. Ben Stitgen placed eighth in the finals of the 3m, scoring a 280.60 total.
The Panthers will return for day two of the three-day Invitational tomorrow, with prelims starting at 9:00 a.m., and the finals taking place at 4:30 p.m.
Recap – Lynn
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – The Lynn University men’s and women’s swimming teams made a strong start on the opening day of the House of Champions Invitational. The women finished the meet ranked sixth overall, while the men secured fourth place. Standout performances included the Fighting Knights women winning the 200-yard relay, Luna Mertins‘s victory in the 50-yard backstroke, Vitaly Kostin‘s 500 win and Maurice Grabowski‘s record-setting time in the 50-yard freestyle.
HOW IT HAPPENED (Women):
– In the 50-yard backstroke, Mertins secured first place with a time of 24.68 seconds, while Laura Dekoninck tied for fifth with a time of 25.68 seconds
– The Lynn relay team of Mertins, Lexi Lundell, Malaika Schneider, and Dekoninck won the 200-yard freestyle relay with a time of 1:31.37
– Luz Tapia Sahagun placed 11th in the 500-yard freestyle, finishing in 5:00.14
– Ally Webster finished 9th in the 200-yard IM with a time of 2:04.13
– In the 50-yard freestyle, Dekoninck claimed 2nd place with a time of 22.88, while Schneider (23.55) and Lundell (23.60) finished 13th and 14th, respectively
HOW IT HAPPENED (Men):
– Grabowski won the 50-yard backstroke with a time of 22.03 seconds
– The Lynn relay team of Kostin, Grabowski, Spencer Hobbs, and Jack Budd placed fifth in the 200-yard freestyle relay, finishing in 1:20.77
– Kostin secured first place in the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 4:23.24, while Spivak finished 23rd with a time of 4:37.38
– Maxim Tsyfarov placed 5th in the 200-yard IM, recording a time of 1:47.93
– Grabowski set a new House of Champions record in the 50-yard freestyle, winning the event with a fast time of 19.48 seconds
– Jack Budd placed 22nd in the same event, clocking 20.80 seconds
– The Lynn relay team of Kamil Geisner, Tsyfarov, Kostin, and Grabowski finished 3rd in the 400-yard medley relay with a time of 3:14.32
Recap – Missouri-St. Louis
INDIANAPOLIS – The University of Missouri-St. Louis women’s and men’s swimming combined for seven B-Standard times and two school records on the first day of IU Indy House of Champions meet on Thursday at the IU Natatorium in Indianapolis.
The Triton women had four top 10 finishes including three B-standard times. The 200 free relay team of Kate Nelson, Madison Bottorff, Romina Itzkovich and Audrey Lantz finished seventh with a time of 1:33.56 for the first B-Standard of the night.
Ella Lantz finished seventh in the 50 back in a time of 26.67 seconds, Justice Beard won the B-Final and finished ninth overall in the 500 freestyle with a B-Standard and school record time of 4:54.75, Nelson won the C-Final in the 50 free with a school record and B-Standard time of 23.45 and A. Lantz was sixth in the C-Final in a time of 23.86 seconds.
UMSL’s 400 medley relay quartet of E. Lantz, Nelson, A. Lantz and Itzkovich finished eighth at 3:49.69.
On the men’s side the Tritons had six top 10 finishes led by Hendrik Bechtel who was fifth in the 500 free with a B-Standard time of 4:29.29. Aaron Wicklund and Conley Savage finished seventh and ninth in the 200 individual medley with a times of 1:50.28 and 1:49.15 respectively which were both good for B-Standards. Savage won the B-Final of the event and Mattia Nardi was sixth in the B-Final at 1:52.10.
David Reynolds won the B-Final of the 50 free with a B-Standard time of 20.24 while Lathan Parks was second in the C-Final at 20.57 seconds and Metehan Saruhan took third in the D-Final with a time of 20.92 seconds.
UMSL’s 400 medley relay foursome of Ryan Conner, Landon Hanesworth, Savage and Reynolds took fifth at 3:17.39 and the Tritons quartet of Reynolds, Parks, Joan Cortadellas Llubera and Saruhan finished eighth at 1:21.40.
Recap – Butler
Butler recorded 71 points on the first day of the House of Champions Meet hosted by IU Indy at the Natatorium downtown. The Bulldogs competed in the 200 Free Relay, 500 Free, 200 IM, 50 Free and the 400 Medley Relay.
Olivia Stotts, Alani Hightower-Bend, Caitlin Herring, and Ava Whittaker teamed up to post a season-best time in the 200 Free Relay. They earned 12th place, clocking in at 1:36.70. Stotts was the lead-off and came up with a 24.21 split. Hightower-Bend followed at 23.92 and Herring swam well for a 24.34. Whittaker had a similar time at 24.23.
Herring was also involved in the 500 Free for BU. She placed 14th in the B-Final with personal-best time of 5:01.36. That result moved her to second place all-time at BU on the Top Ten list. Kayla Wright, Sam Tomic and Meghan Voelker were also in action. Wright placed 27th in the prelims with a season-best time of 5:05.59. Tomic’s lifetime-best effort was good enough for 39th (5:11.28) AND Voelker just missed her personal-best time, clocking in at 5:22.27.
Kate Schilling nearly set a school record in the 200 IM with her time of 2:03.04 in the prelims. Schilling placed second in the A-Final clocking in at 2:03.16. Her school record stands at 2:02.89.
Caroline Zimner (2:06.40), Sadie Brown (2:09.11), Emma Ciesla (2:10.03), Lydia Eberlein (2:10.50), Gianna Leffler (2:17.05) and Avery Piel (2:20.94 also competed in the 200 IM. Every Bulldog mentioned either posted a season-best or personal-best time in the event.
Nine Bulldogs swam in the 50 Free on Thursday. BU was led by Stotts and her season-best time of 24.28. Herring and Whittaker were also Top 50 finishers with times at 24.35 and 24.46. Hightower-Bend went for a season-best swim in the 50 Free to touch the wall at 24.60.
BIG EAST qualifying times went to Elizabeth Naylor (24.61), Zizi Mateja (24.93) and CeCe Gerard (25.08). Rounding out the effort was Lauren Bergman (25.11) and Ava McGonigle (25.95).
The day ended with Butler competing in the 400 Medley Relay. The team of Leffler, Schilling, Bergman and Stotts placed 10th with a time of 3:49.05. Leffler’s split in the back was 57.96, Schilling went 1:03.02 in the breast and Bergman took the fly at 58.02. Stotts finished off the action with her 51.90 split.
Go Flames!