Feb. 16, 2006
CARBONDALE, Ill. -
After making a wave in the preliminary rounds at 10 a.m. the top sixteen swimmers moved on to compete in the final round at 6 p.m. The Illinois State swimming and diving finished its first day at the State Farm Missouri Valley Conference Championships in Carbondale, Ill. in second place (246) along with host Southern Illinois. The `Birds and the Salukis follow first place Missouri State (265).
Head coach Steve Paska was pleased with the position the team holds at the end of day one.
"We are in a position that is competitive," said Paska. "Today wasn't too far off of what we had planned for. We are pretty close to where we want to be. We could have probably been a little closer in points to first, but we have nothing to be ashamed of after day one. We are in great position and we just need to build on it. "
The Redbirds opened the finals with a second-place finish in the 200-yard freestyle relay (1:34.95). Kyle Pullman, Valerie Zaleski, Brittany Armstrong and Monique Witkowski were the four competing in the event. Pullman also took third-place in the 50-yard freestyle (24.25). Christine Steinbach, Kathleen Borkovec, Jamie Haseman, Emily Richardson and Jennifer Klicka all placed in the 500-yard freestyle which heavily contributed points to the overall second-place finish for the team. The `Birds finished day one with a third-place finish in the 400-yard medley relay (3:53.87).
"The effort is there," said Paska. "We can do it. We have a chance and there is no pressure. We need to step up to the challenge, continue to compete and improve our positioning. They just need to relax and swim with more aggression. I am excited and I am looking forward tomorrow's competition."
The diving team competed on the one-meter board contributing to the overall team's placing. The Redbirds had four divers place in the top eight at the final event. Emily Hirt lead the `Birds with a third-place finish earning the team 16-points. Katie Janonis placed fifth, followed by Kaitlin Schneider in sixth and freshman, Jessica Bains finished in eighth. The diving team will compete again on Saturday on the three-meter boards.
Head diving coach Tom Davidson was happy with the way the team performed tonight.
"They did everything I wanted them to do," said Davidson. "Emily had a rough morning, but she turned it around for the night competition. She did what she needed to do to move up and she performed very well. For Saturday I just want the team to get themselves in the best position in the morning so they can move on to the finals."
The `Birds will continue competition in the Championships beginning at 10 a.m. on Friday, February 17 with preliminary rounds. The final round on Friday will start at 6 p.m.
