Feb. 6, 2007
NORMAL, Ill. -
Six former ISU swimmers and five divers have been named to the Missouri Valley Conference All-Centennial Team, which was announced Tuesday. The team has been composed as part of the celebration to honor the MVC's century of excellence as the nation's second-oldest NCAA Division I conference.
The All-Centennial Team is composed of both current and former student-athletes. In order to be named a member of the team, swimmers and divers had to meet three criteria, which included: three or four-time all-conference athlete; specialty award honoree (swimmer/diver of the year) and all-conference athlete remarkable performance at individual institution (record-breaking performance).
Former Redbirds being honored as team members include swimmers Andrea Bintz (1997-2000), Julie Cocks (2003-2005), Lindsay Crowder (1999-2002), Emily Puglsley (1994-1997), Pam Racansky (1996-1999) and Christine Sudlow (1994-1997). Former Illinois State divers being honored are Krystal Featherston (2002-2005), Andrea Lovelle (1998-2001), Nicole Pesci (1997-1999), Monica Torres (1994-1997) and Terra Whisman (2002-2005).
Bintz was a part of the 200-yard freestyle relay that set a Horton Pool record on December 3, 1999 with a time of 1:38.27. She was also named the Most Valuable Swimmer for the 1999-2000 season and received the spirit award the same season.
In her first season as a Redbird, Cocks was named one of the top newcomers to the team. She was honored as the Missouri Valley Conference Swimmer of the Week on numerous occasions, along with being named the Valley Conference Swimming Athlete of the Year in 2004. Cocks was also a back-to-back MVC Champion in the 100 butterfly and 100 backstroke. She also took home a MVC title in the 200 backstroke. She still holds the Horton Pool record in the 100 butterfly (56.41) and was a member of both the 200 (1:45.91) and 400 (3:53.72) medley relay teams that currently hold the pool record.
Crowder was presented the team's spirit award in 2000, and was a member of the 200-yard freestyle relay which set the Horton Pool record with a time of 1:38.27 in 1999. She was named to the 2000 All-Missouri Valley Conference team for the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 2:07.05. On December 12, 2002, Crowder broke the Horton Pool record in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 52.56. She received the MVC Swimmer of the Week honor on numerous occasions during her time as a Redbird.
Pugsley swam for Normal Community High School and decided to stay in the area to swim at Illinois State University. While with the `Birds, she was one of the team's stronger sprint swimmers. As a freshman, she set personal best times in the 100-butterfly, 50 and 100 freestyle and was a member of the 200 freestyle relay, which set the school record of 1:35.99. The same 200 freestyle relay became champions of the event at the National Independent Championship in 1997.
Sudlow was honored as Illinois State's Most Valuable Swimmer and was also the MVC Swimmer of the Year. She was also named to the all-academic swimming team. The MVC awards came in 1999 after Sudlow won the 100-yard backstroke at the Championships with a league-record time of 57.88 seconds. In addition to her individual event, she was also a member of the 200 and 400-yard medley relay teams, both of which set MVC records.
As a freshman, Featherstron qualified for the NCAA Regional Zones on the 3-meter board and qualified again her sophomore year on both the 1 and 3-meter boards. Along with countless MVC Diver of the Week honors, Featherstron earned the crown on both the 1 and 3-meter boards at the MVC Championship meet her sophomore and senior years. She in the only Redbird to ever receive the honor of Missouri Valley Conference Diver of the Year three out of her four years at Illinois State.
Lovelle was honored as Illinois State's Scholar Athlete of the Year in 2000 after carrying a perfect 4.0 cumulative grade point average. Along with the honor, she was also named to the GTE Academic All-Distric V University Division first-team honors for the 1999-2000 season. Due in part to her efforts, the Illinois State diving team won the Illinois Division I Diving Championships in 1999. In 2000, Lovelle held the MVC records in both the 1 and 3-meter diving events. Lovell still holds the 1-meter (six dive) record with a score of 285.75, 3-meter (six dive) with a score of 293.70 and eleven dive with a score of 519.10.
In 1999, Pecsi's first-place finish on the 1-meter board led the Redbirds to a team title at the Illinois Division I Diving Championships. She was named the Missouri Valley Diver of the Year for the 1999-2000 season. Pecsi currently holds the platform (nine dive) record for Illinois State with a score of 264.50, which she set it 2000.
A Bloomington, Ill., native, Torres chose to stay in the area and dive as a Redbird. In 1994, she qualified for the NCAA Diving Zones. In 1997, she was named the Missouri Valley Conference Diver of the Year and was also named to the league's all-academic swimming and diving team. Torres currently holds the Horton Pool Diving record for the 1-meter (eleven dive) event with a score of 447.52, which she set in 1997.
During her freshman season, Whisman placed second on the 1-meter board at the Missouri Valley Conference Championships, qualified for NCAA Zones and was named Diver of the Year by her coaches and teammates. In her final three years as a Redbird, she placed in the top-five at the MVC Championship's on both the 1 and 3-meter boards. Whisman was named All-Missouri Valley Conference and a MVC Scholar Athlete.
