Illinois vs. Southern Illinois, Illinois State
- Oct. 12, 2019
- Champaign, Illinois
- Illinois def. Illinois State 210-90; Illinois def. Southern Illinois 176-123; Southern Illinois def. Illinois State 187-113
- Results
Courtesy: Illinois Athletics
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Illinois swimming and diving team earned wins over Illinois State (210-90) and Southern Illinois (176-123) Thursday at the ARC Pool in a double dual meet with the help of career-bests from both sophomore Sarah Cano and freshman Kaleigh Haworth, as well as a strong performance from senior Jamie Kolar. The Illini improve to 4-1 in dual meets on the year.
“The team had great energy today in the pool, on the boards and on the deck. Everyone was essential in the team’s success today and we need that same effort on Saturday,” said head coach Sue Novitsky. “I was pleased with how we competed strong all the way through the meet. We have a quick turnaround for another big challenge at Michigan State. This week will be a great test of the team’s resiliency and toughness.”
The Orange and Blue got off to a strong start on the day, as the relay team of Cano, freshman Divya Kale, freshman Isabelle Guerra and senior Kristin Anderson came away with the top time in the first event, the 400 medley relay (3:54.12). In the 1000 freestyle, senior Emily Martin finished with a time of 10:41.65 and sophomore Sidney Kennedy completed the event with a time of 10:44.74 to take second and third place, respectively. Martin also took the silver in the 500 freestyle (5:08.06).
Sophomore Abigail Cabush touched the wall first in the 200 freestyle, finishing with a time of 1:52.41, as Kolar came away with the fastest times in both the 100 backstroke (:57.97) and the 200 backstroke (2:03.99).
In addition to contributing to the fastest 400 medley relay team, Cano also took the top spot in the 200 individual medley (2:09.94) and finished in third place with a career-best time of :54.10 in the 100 freestyle. The Cedar Park, Texas, native also swam a leg on the fastest 400 freestyle relay (3:33.37), with members Guerra, Anderson and junior Emma Curtis. Anderson also won the 50 freestyle with a time of :24.26.
Haworth earned her career-best in the 200 breaststroke, as the Highlands Ranch, Colo., native finished the event with a time of 2:23.21, to claim first place.
On the Boards
Sophomore Taylor Shegos sat atop the leaderboard with a score of 284.30 in the 3-meter diving competition. Shegos also took fifth place in 1-meter diving with a score of 225.25. Fellow sophomore Madelyn Crosby finished in fourth place in 1-meter and in fifth place in 3-meter, posting scores of 243.85 and 245.85, respectively.
Freshman Erin Young finished in seventh on both 1-meter (211.45) and 3-meter (212.35).
Up Next
The Illini will head to East Lansing, Mich., to take on Michigan State in a Big Ten dual meet on Saturday, Oct. 19. Action is set to begin at 11 a.m. CT.
Courtesy: Southern Illinois Athletics
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. — The Southern Illinois women’s swimming and diving program split with Illinois and Illinois State in tri-meet action on Thursday evening inside the ARC Pool. SIU defeated the Redbirds, 187-113, and fell to the Fighting Illini, 123-176.
Southern reeled in five victories on the day, which was a three-win improvement from last season against the two squads. The Salukis also compiled 17 top-three finishes.
“I like putting my teams in less than ideal situations where you have to travel and face good competition,” head coach Geoff Hanson said. “Today was definitely one of those situations. I was happy we managed to come away with a conference win over Illinois State and keep it close against the Illini. Some events went our way, while others did not. Some came down to a few tenths of a second. But I was happy with how we battled and am pleased with our progress.”
EVENT WINS
Eden Girloanta
• 500-free (5:07.89)
• 1,000-free (10:31.23)
Payton Parman
• 200-fly (2:07.84)
Sierra Forbord
• 100-free (52.58)
Baobao Ji
• One-meter dive (292.20)
MEET HIGHLIGHTS
Sophomore swimmer Eden Girloanta led SIU with a team-best two wins in the 500-yard freestyle (5:07.89) and 1,000-yard freestyle (10:31.23). It was the third-straight meet that she took home first in the two distance events. Girloanta outlasted Illini swimmer Emily Martin (5:08.06) by .17 seconds in the 500-free, while she came back to win the 1,000-free by over 10 seconds.
Baobao Ji‘s strong start to the 2019-20 campaign continued, as she placed first in the one-meter dive (292.20) and second in the three-meter dive (272.85). Twin sister Beibei Ji finished close behind with a runner-up finish in the one-meter (289.40) and a third-place mark in the three-meter (271.90).
Payton Parman and Sierra Forbord clocked winning times in the tri-meet as well.
Parman swam away to first in the 200-yard butterfly with a season-best time of 2:07.84. It was the third-straight meet that the senior won the fly event.
Forbord sprinted to a first-place finish in the 100-yard freestyle (52.58). Abby Cabush (1:52.41) of Illinois fended off Forbord (1:52.48) by .07 seconds to narrowly win the 200-yard freestyle.
Several other Salukis tallied top-three finishes to earn key points in the split.
Laura Carver, the reigning Missouri Valley Conference Swimmer of the Week, placed second in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:24.04) and 200-yard individual medley (2:10.15). Samantha Parsons placed third behind Carver in the 200-breast with a time of 2:24.13.
Deven Speed turned in top-three performances in both back events. The sophomore finished second in the 200-yard backstroke (2:07.15) and third in the 100-yard backstroke (59.41).
Rita Naude provided a spark in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 57.23, good for second overall.
Sarah Vogt raced to third place in the 100-yard breaststroke with a mark of 1:06.67. The freshman was a mere .34 seconds shy of victory.
MORE THOUGHTS FROM COACH HANSON
On Eden Girloanta’s two-win performance…
“Eden (Girloanta) is a great talent. She is just a sophomore and is still learning more and more about college swimming each week. She was trailing in both races at the halfway point, but stayed true to her game plan. She is learning to use her strengths and it resulted in two impressive wins today.”
On standout performers…
“The twins (Baobao Ji & Beibei Ji), along with Payton Parman and Sierra Forbord stood out for us. In diving, they went one-two in the one-meter and two-three in the three-meter. Those were big points in a close matchup. Forbord and Parman earned key wins in the 100-free and 200-fly as well. Going on the road and performing well against a Power-Five program will bode well for us come conference season.”
NEXT UP
Southern will be back in action on Nov. 9 (Saturday) in Springfield, Mo. to take on MVC opponent Missouri State.
Courtesy: Illinois State Athletics
CHAMPAIGN, Ill. – The Illinois State swimming and diving team continued its tough schedule on the road Thursday night, falling to Illinois (210-90) and Southern Illinois (187-113) in double-dual action.
TOP PERFORMANCES
Four Redbirds secured top-five finishes in events they competed in for the first time this season:
- Kierston Farley-Sepe: 200-yard freestyle (1:55.53), 100-yard butterfly (57.23)The senior won the 100-yard butterfly
- Emily Keebler: 100-yard backstroke (1:00.93)
- Katie Tillotson: 50-yard freestyle (24.97)
- Haley Rivera: 100-yard butterfly (1:00.00)
Additionally, four Redbirds posted season-best times, while finishing top-five overall, in Thursday night’s double dual:
- Morgan Rosser: 1000-yard freestyle (10:48.48)
- Lauren Naeger: 200-yard butterfly (2:09.84)
- Haley Rivera: 200-yard butterfly (2:11.52)
- Jensen Keck: 200-yard breaststroke (2:26.01)
OTHER NOTEABLES
Reigning Missouri Valley Conference Diver of the Week Caroline Lecoeur finished third and fourth, respectively, in the 1-meter (263.00) and 3-meter (247.90) diving events. The 400-yard freestyle relay team of Farley-Sepe, Makenna Licking, Tillotson and Keebler missed a season-best time by .01 seconds, finishing in 3:37.11.
Tillotson and Keck each turned in top-five performances in the 100-yard freestyle (54.67) and 100-yard backstroke (1:06.57), respectively, while Julie Kolar finished the 200-yard IM in 2:13.87.
UP NEXT
Illinois State will have nearly a month to gear up for its next challenge, when the Redbirds host Missouri Valley Conference foe Indiana State at Horton Pool on Nov. 9.
