ATHENS, Ohio – Illinois State swimming and diving recorded multiple top-five finishes, highlighted by two entries into the program record book in the 200-yard breaststroke, on the opening day of its two-day meet against Ohio University on Thursday at the Ohio University Aquatic Center.
Every Illinois State performance on day one resulted in either a season-best or lifetime-best mark. Four swimmers recorded lifetime bests, including Freya Hingston and Julia Bartula in the 200-yard individual medley and Molly Allison and Ava Ostendorf in the 200-yard breaststroke. Divers Selena Corona and Bayley Fowler also posted lifetime-best scores on the 1-meter board.
Ostendorf won the 200-yard breaststroke in 2:16.32, moving from fifth to third in Illinois State program history. Allison finished second in 2:16.80, climbing into fifth place in the program record books.
"I am really happy with the performances today," said ISU head coach Ryan Evans. "After a long day of travel, everyone stepped up and competed. Every single performance was either a lifetime best or a season best."
Westphal led the Redbirds in the 1,000-yard freestyle, finishing third in 10:36.64. Hingston added a fifth-place finish in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:07.46, while Bartula placed fourth in 2:07.44.
Illinois State recorded three top-seven finishes in the 200-yard backstroke. Hailey Fris led the way in fifth at 2:05.41, followed by Bailey Gott in sixth at 2:06.79 and Martyna Dobek in seventh at 2:08.74.
Alex Davis paced the Redbirds in the 100-yard freestyle, placing fifth in 52.63 seconds. Elle Dameworth finished sixth in 53.87, while Amelia Murphy took seventh in 54.24.
The Redbirds opened the meet with a third-place finish in the 200-yard freestyle relay. The team of Allison, Fris, Davis and Gott combined for a time of 1:36.79. Illinois State also placed third in the 400-yard medley relay, as Fris, Allison, Hingston and Davis finished in 3:50.84.
On the diving boards, Corona led Illinois State in the 1-meter dive with a fourth-place finish and a score of 234.53. Fowler placed fifth with 230.63 points, while Emma Thompson finished seventh with 219.72.
"Now it's a quick turnaround before we compete again tomorrow," said Evans. "I have challenged the team to match tonight's performance, so I am looking forward to seeing how we respond in the morning."
UP NEXT
Illinois State returns to the pool tomorrow for the second and final day of its meet against Ohio University. Events will begin at 9 a.m. CT at the Ohio University Aquatics Center.
