NORMAL, Ill. – The Illinois State swimming and diving team, under direction of first-year head coach Caitlin Hamilton, will travel to Columbia, Missouri, Feb. 19-22, for the 2020 Missouri Valley Conference Swimming and Diving Championships.
The four-day event, hosted by Missouri State, will begin Wednesday night at the Mizzou Aquatic Center with the 200-yard medley and 800-yard freestyle relays. There will be preliminary rounds that begin at 11 a.m. the remaining three days, with the final heats beginning at 6 p.m. on Thursday and Friday and 5 p.m. on Saturday. A full schedule can be found on the Meet Central page on the MVC website.
Pre-Championship Predictions
The Redbirds were picked to finish fifth in the annual coaches' Pre-Championship Poll. Missouri State was predicted to collect its fourth-straight MVC title, while Southern Illinois was chosen immediately behind the Bears. Indiana State and UNI were picked to finish ahead of the Redbirds, with Little Rock, Evansville and Valparaiso rounding out the bottom half of the poll.
Making a Splash
A total of 15 Redbird swimmers enter the championships with a top 25 mark in the MVC in their respective individual events. Kierston Farley-Sepe leads the way, sitting in the top 10 in five events while holding the top time in the 200-yard butterfly (1:59.59) and 400-yard IM (4:14.96). Jensen Keck and Haley Rivera rank in the top 10 in all three of their individual events, while Katie Tillotson, Emily Keebler, Madyson Morse and Julie Kolar also sit in the top 10 in at least one event.
Diving In
The ISU diving squad is led by the reigning MVC Diver of the Year, Caroline Lecoeur, who has grabbed four Valley Diver of the Week honors during the 2019-20 season. The Lyons, France, native has swept the 1- and 3-meter diving events in two meets against a pair of conference opponents during the regular season, while freshman Kamryn Blake has consistently been the next highest finisher for the Redbirds.
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