IUPUI juniors Lexi Laird and Tony Carroll were named Swimmers of the Week by The Summit League after their performances against Butler, Valparaiso, and Wright State. This is the first time this season that the IUPUI Jaguars have swept the weekly conference awards. In two weekends, the Jaguars host the 10th House of Champions Invitational. Following the House of Champions meet, Laird and Carroll, along with any others that qualify, will head to Tennessee for the AT&T Winter National Championships.
Lexi Laird led the Jaguars to three wins over the weekend, improving to a record of 6-0 on the year as a team. The Jaguars topped Butler and Valparaiso on friday night, and then Wright State on Saturday. Laird had three individual wins, a second place finish, and was a member of three winning relays. On Friday against Valparaiso and Butler, the junior won the 100 free (53.78), ranking ninth in the Summit League, was second in the 50 free (24.41), tying for sixth-best in the league and was a member of the winning 200 medley relay team (1:48.46). In the dual vs. Wright State, she swept the backstroke events winning the 100 back in 57.53 and the 200 back in 2:07.27. Her 100 back time is third-best in the league, while her 200 back time ranks fifth. The Kokomo, Ind., native also helped IUPUI win the 200 medley relay (1:47.42) and 400 free relay (3:38.73).
Tony Carroll garners the second weekly honor of his career and his first Swimmer of the Week award this season after recording four individual wins and a trio of relay event wins. The junior helped IUPUI defeat Valparaiso, 150-67, with first-place finishes in the 200 free, 200 IM and 200 medley relay. He won the 200 free in 1:42.24, the second-fastest league time this season. He came back the next day to earn a pair of individual and relay victories against Wright State. The Granger, Ind., native won the 100 back in 52.01 and the 500 free in 4:42.66, both ranking fourth in the league. He was a member of the winning 200 medley relay team, which set a school record with a time of 1:33.85, and the first place 400 free relay squad (3:07.98). Both relay teams recorded the second-fastest league times this season.
ABOUT THE SUMMIT LEAGUE
In its fourth decade of Division I athletics, The Summit League offers 19 championship sports and has a combined enrollment of over 120,000 at eight institutions, including three located in top 60 U.S. metro populations and two land-grant universities. Member institutions include: Denver (University of Denver), Fort Wayne (Indiana University-Purdue University-Fort Wayne), IUPUI (Indiana University-Purdue University-Indianapolis), North Dakota State University, Omaha (University of Nebraska Omaha), the University of South Dakota, South Dakota State University and Western Illinois University. Previously known as the Mid-Continent Conference, The Summit League rebranded in 2007 and has since produced eight NCAA Champions, 62 All-Americans and 50 Academic All-America selections.
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