Southern Illinoise University Athletics
Southern Illinois University
MVC Women's Championships
MVC Championships: Day Two Finals
02/19/2015 | 12:00:00 | Swimming & Diving
By Elizabeth Robinson
SIUSalukis.com
CARBONDALE, Ill. - Day Two of the MVC Swimming and Diving Championships left the Salukis hungry for a championship title, as the SIU women's swimming and diving team finished in second place with 272 points, only eight points behind reigning champions Missouri State.
The Salukis entered the finals session of Day Two with seven swimmers and three divers competing in the A Finals of their events. At the conclusion of the day, SIU came away with five top-five finishes in swimming, and two in diving.
"You have to be happy with today's performances," head coach Rick Walker said. "We've already scored more points than we ever have at this point in time, and I think it's looking very positive for us."
Junior Kaixuan 'Sherry' Zhang came away with SIU's only title of the day, taking first place in the One-Meter Dive for the second consecutive year. Zhang's score of 379.35 breaks the all-time MVC Championship record for six dives that she previously held at 346.25.
Missouri State came away with two all-time MVC Championship records, the first in the 500-yard freestyle. For the third consecutive year, Missouri State's Dora Kiss claimed the 500-yard Freestyle title, breaking the Dr. Edward J. Shea Natatorium record and all-time MVC Championships record with a 4:44.41 finish.
SIU's Kelsie Walker took second place, finishing with a 4:46.07 mark, her fastest of the season. Bryn Handley and Helena Amorim followed in third and fourth places, respectively, Handley with a 4:52.81 finish and Amorim at 4:54.57. Lauren Stockton rounded out the Salukis in the A Final, coming in at sixth place with a 4:55.84 finish.
The Missouri State Bears clinched the 200 Individual Medley title with another all-time MVC Championships record, with Lauren Pavel finishing in 2:02.84. Freshman Chandler Ott represented the Salukis in the A Final, entering as the fifth seed. Ott finished in 2:07.68 to take sixth place overall.
After tying for the title at last year's championships, Illinois State's Marissa Yontz took first place in the 50-yard Freestyle, with a 23.10 finish. SIU's Holly Johnson earned fourth place, coming in at 23.47, followed by McKenna Avery in sixth place at 23.65.
The evening concluded with the 200-yard Freestyle Relay. The Evansville Purple Aces came away with the fourth MVC Championships record of the night, finishing in first place with a 1:33.06 time. The Salukis battled for a top position, coming in third with a 1:33.85 finish.
"The girls are very excited. They're fighting and I think they're focused. But they're focused on what they need to do, not what other people are going to do. I think that's where our comfort zone is," Walker said.
Day Three of the MVC Swimming and Diving Championships includes more events than today's session, such as the 400-yard Individual Medley and Medley Relay, 100-yard Butterfly, Breaststroke and Backstroke, the 200-yard Freestyle, and the Three-Meter Dive.
"Tomorrow is a big day," Walker said. "We have to maximize our positives, minimize our negatives and we can only worry about what we have control over."
Preliminary rounds of Day Three begin at 11 a.m. in the Dr. Edward J. Shea Natatorium in the SIU Student Rec Center, starting with the 400-yard Individual Medley.
Players Mentioned
