Ball State vs UIC
- October 12, 2024
- Muncie, Ind.
- SCY (25 yards)
- Results
Courtesy: Ball State Sports
MUNCIE, Ind. – – The Ball State women’s swimming & diving program opened the 2024-25 campaign on a high note, earning 12 event wins to score a 176.5-123.5 victory over visiting UIC Saturday afternoon at the Lewellen Aquatic Center.
In the pool, three Cardinals scored a pair of individual wins on the day led by junior Payton Kelly who took home top billing in both the 200 freestyle (1:51.25) and the 100 freestyle (51.97). Kelly would also swim anchor for both the first-place 200 medley relay (1:44.68) and 400 freestyle relay (3:30.84), giving her four event victories on the day.
Graduate Laura Wright continued to shine in the breaststroke for Ball State, coming back for her COVID year of eligibility and opening the season by sweeping the events. She finished the 100 in 1:04.76 and the 200 in 2:23.46, while also swimming the breaststroke leg for the first-place 200 medley relay.
Senior Lilia Newkirk also scored an event sweep for the Cardinals, taking top honors in both the 100 backstroke (57.69) and 200 backstroke (2:05.10). She also started the meet with a 50 backstroke split of 27.14 to start off the first-place 200 medley relay.
Also earning individual wins for Ball State in the pool were sophomore Alexa Von Holtz in the 200 butterfly (2:05.06) and freshman Anna Keen in the 50 freestyle (24.61). Keen would also swim the butterfly leg of the first-place 200 medley relay and leadoff the winning 400 freestyle relay.
Also aiding in the win in the meet’s final swimming event were junior Haley Sakbun and junior Kiran Stauffer.
Along with the success in the pool, the Cardinals shined in the diving well with graduate Grace Walker sweeping the diving event. In fact, Walker turned in a NCAA Zone Diving qualifying mark on the 1-meter board (293.10), while falling just shy of the mark on the 3-meter board (276.68).
In addition, Walkers score of 293.10 on the 1-meter board is the fourth-best individual score for six dives in program history.
Sophomore Leelah Fettig also had a solid day on the diving boards, taking second in both events. She scored 244.28 on 1-meter and 245.40 on 3-meter.
The Ball State women’s swimming & diving program returns to action Friday (Oct. 18), when it travels to Mid-American Conference rival Miami for a 3 p.m. start.
Courtesy: UIC Athletics
Muncie, Ind. (Oct.12, 2024) The UIC men’s and women’s swimming and diving programs 2024-25 season began today, as the Flames took on Ball State in a dual meet at the Lewellen Aquatic Center in Muncy, Ind. The men’s team came away with a win (156.5-143.5), and the women’s team fell short to Ball State (123.5-176.5)
Quote from UIC Head Coach Ashley Dell
“It is great to be back in the pool competing again. It’s not easy sitting on a bus for 4 hours before racing so I am proud of the way both teams took it one event at a time and gave it their all. The men getting the win against a conference opponent was amazing and the women being so close to a solid MAC team was great to see. We’re excited for the rest of this Fall and can’t wait to see what this group accomplishes together.”
Diving
Women’s
- In the 3-meter competition the Flames had two top-five finishes with junior Kerry-Leigh Morrison (Gauteng, South Africa/St. Mary’s School) finishing fourth with a score 232.05, and fellow junior Kathryn Kleczka (Franklin, Wis./Divine Savior Holy Angels) finishing fifth with a score of 227.02.
- The same duo of Morrison and Kleckza finished third and fourth in the 1-meter competition with scores of 243.15 and 229.43.
Men’s
- UIC dominated the 1-meter diving competition, securing the top two spots. Junior Harrison Nolan (Riverside, Ill./Riverside Brookfield High School/Kentucky) took first place with an impressive score of 338.55, while senior Cole Tremewan (Ann Arbor, Mich./Pioneer) finished in second with a score of 304.73.
- The 3-meter dive was not much different with Nolan and Tremewan getting first and second, but sophomore Christian Curtis (Flossmoor, Ill./Homewood Flossmoor) got in on the action finishing third with a score of 312.30.
Swimming
Women’s
- Freshman Samantha Wilson (Richmond, New Zealand/Waimea College) made her Flames’ debut and had an impressive start to her collegiate swimming career. She clinched victory in two events: the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 56.61 seconds and the 200-yard individual medley (IM) with a time of 2:08.65.
- The Flames trio of junior Madison Helmick (Bingham Farms, Mich./Birmingham Groves), sophomore Molly Kroeger (Easton, Md./Easton), and freshman Karolena Shaw (Franklin Lakes, N.J./Indian Hills) dominated the competition, going one, two, three in both the 1000 and 500-yard freestyle events. Kroeger claimed victory in the 1000-yard freestyle, while Helmick secured first place in the 500-yard freestyle.
Men’s
- Sophomore James McCarthy (Minnetonka, Minn./DeLaSalle) kicked off his 2024-25 swimming season with an impressive performance, winning both the 200-yard breaststroke and the 200-yard individual medley (IM). He recorded times of 2:08.03 in the breaststroke and 1:56.05 in the IM.
- Fellow sophomore Jack Mills (Toronto, Canada/Lawrence Park Collegiate Institute) got in on the action winning the 1000 yard freestyle with a time of 9:57.49.
- Senior Daniel Galinski (Elmwood Park, Ill./Elmwood Park) won the 100 yard breaststroke with a time of 58:66, and finished second in the 200 yard breaststroke to fellow Flame James McCarthy.
- In the 200-yard butterfly, graduate student Liam Davis (Naperville, Ill./Plainfield North) secured a first-place finish with an impressive time of 1:53.93.
Up Next
The Flames will be back in the water on Oct. 26 as they travel to Carbondale, Ill. to take on Missouri-Valley Conference opponent Southern Illinois.
