NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State swimming and diving teams wrapped up the three-day Purdue Invite on Saturday night, finishing sixth out of eight teams.
Senior Kierston Farley-Sepe broke a trio of school records, while Caroline Lecoeur broke the platform diving record. Additionally, every Redbird swimmer showed season improvements in their respective individual events, while several turned in lifetime best performances.
DAY 1
Kierston Farley Sepe broke her own school record in the 200-yard IM, posting a time of 2:01.84 during the preliminary round, before replacing that performance in the final round, clocking in at 2:01.79. A total of 14 Redbirds recorded season or lifetime bests in three different events to open the Purdue Invite, as nine swimmers advanced to the finals in their respective events.
Haley Rivera, Emily Keebler and Julia Oostman each swam faster in the finals, knocking more time off their season best performances that they set earlier in the morning. Rivera and Keebler finished the 200-yard IM at the 2:05.37 and 2:06.16 mark, respectively, while Oostman finished the 500-yard freestyle event in 5:03.36 – nearly three seconds faster than her preliminary time.Â
On the boards, Caroline Lecoeur continued to anchor the Redbirds, finishing fourth overall in the 3-meter diving event with a score of 293.35 to account for 15 of Illinois State's 21 team points.
DAY 2
Farley-Sepe continued to shine on the second day of the Purdue Invite, breaking the 400-yard IM school record twice, finishing with an NCAA B cut time of 4:15.96 in the finals. A total of 13 more season or lifetime best times were turned in by Illinois State swimmers, as Keebler and Alyssa Reinholz shattered their lifetime best times in the 400-yard IM (4:31.09) and 100-yard backstroke (59.04), respectively, in both the preliminary and final rounds. Rivera also posted a lifetime best finish in the 400-yard IM (4:26.75).
Four Illinois State divers – Lecoeur, Kamryn Blake, Rachel Johnston and Emma Butts – excelled in the 1-meter diving event. Lecoeur turned in the third best score of 301.60, making it a season best performance for the junior as well as helping her qualify for NCAA Diving Zones. Blake and Johnston finished seventh and 12th, respectively, with scores of 265.85 and 248.90, respectively, as both divers notched lifetime best performances in the event. Butts also turned in a lifetime best score of 169.30.
DAY 3
Three lifetime bests and 11 season best performances were turned in during the final preliminary round on Saturday morning. Keebler (200-yard backstroke), Reinholz (100-yard freestyle) and Madyson Morse (200-yard breaststroke) each turned in lifetime best marks during the morning session, while Keebler shaved more time off in the finals finishing in 2:07.34.
Farley-Sepe replaced the 200-yard butterfly record that was set in 2013, finishing the event in 1:59.59, while Lecoeur broke the ISU platform diving record with a score of 177.10.
UP NEXT
Illinois State will open the 2020 calendar year in Florida, competing against Florida Gulf Coast, Tulane and Liberty on Jan. 4.
GoRedbirds.com: Your online source for Illinois State Athletics, tickets, Weisbecker Scholarship Fund gifts, multimedia, Redbird merchandise, photos and more
