Thursday, February 20
Columbia, Mo.
Southern Illinois University
vs
MVC Championships (Women)
Salukis break two school records on Day two at MVC's
02/20/2020 | 8:54:00 | Swimming & Diving
COLUMBIA, Mo. — The Southern Illinois women's swimming and diving team broke two school records on Day two at the Missouri Valley Conference Championships. The Salukis remain in second place with 197 points. Defending conference champion Missouri State leads SIU by a 95-point margin.
Freshman swimmer Lucia Romero shined on Day two with a school-record time of 22.96 in the 50-yard freestyle. The Zaragoza, Spain native surpassed McKenna Avery's mark of 22.99 set during the 2017-18 season. Overall, Romero placed second in the A-final and was followed closely by Sierra Forbord in fourth (23.37). Hannah Petrone was fifth (24.04) while Rita Naude was eighth (24.13) in the B-final.
The 200-yard freestyle relay team of Romero, Jacqueline Rose, Petrone and Forbord raced to third place and a school-record time of 1:32.86. The time bested the previous record of 1:33.29 set in 2017.
Senior diver Baobao Ji was Southern's lone MVC Champion of the day, as she won the one-meter dive with a score of 287.90. It was her second-career conference title and her first since 2018. Twin sister Beibei Ji finished runner-up in the one-meter at 278.95. The duo has finished one-two in the one-meter in the last three Valley Championships.
Another senior in Laura Carver swam to fourth place in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:02.56. The mark was the second-fastest in school history, just .43 seconds shy of the school record (2:02.13) she set at the SIU Invitational last November (11/14).
Eden Girloanta kicked off the first event of the finals session with a fourth-place finish in the 500-yard freestyle (4:54.43). Only one second separated second through fourth place.
Payton Parman and Laura Mircea were other top finishers for the Salukis. Parman earned a trip to the B-final in the 200-IM, where she placed sixth with a time of 2:06.99. Mircea placed second (227.15) in the one-meter dive B-final.
SIU will be back in action tomorrow for Day three at the MVC Championships, which will feature seven finals events. Preliminary events will begin at 11 a.m, followed by finals events at 6 p.m.
Along with following the MVC Championship Central page, follow @SIU_SwimDive on twitter, @SIUSwimandDive on Instagram and Saluki Swimming and Diving on Facebook for the latest updates on the Salukis.
Day 2 Standings
Missouri State - 309.5
Southern Illinois - 214
Illinois State - 185
Indiana State - 183.5
Northern Iowa - 172
Evansville - 110
Little Rock - 83
Valparaiso - 71
Freshman swimmer Lucia Romero shined on Day two with a school-record time of 22.96 in the 50-yard freestyle. The Zaragoza, Spain native surpassed McKenna Avery's mark of 22.99 set during the 2017-18 season. Overall, Romero placed second in the A-final and was followed closely by Sierra Forbord in fourth (23.37). Hannah Petrone was fifth (24.04) while Rita Naude was eighth (24.13) in the B-final.
The 200-yard freestyle relay team of Romero, Jacqueline Rose, Petrone and Forbord raced to third place and a school-record time of 1:32.86. The time bested the previous record of 1:33.29 set in 2017.
Senior diver Baobao Ji was Southern's lone MVC Champion of the day, as she won the one-meter dive with a score of 287.90. It was her second-career conference title and her first since 2018. Twin sister Beibei Ji finished runner-up in the one-meter at 278.95. The duo has finished one-two in the one-meter in the last three Valley Championships.
Another senior in Laura Carver swam to fourth place in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 2:02.56. The mark was the second-fastest in school history, just .43 seconds shy of the school record (2:02.13) she set at the SIU Invitational last November (11/14).
Eden Girloanta kicked off the first event of the finals session with a fourth-place finish in the 500-yard freestyle (4:54.43). Only one second separated second through fourth place.
Payton Parman and Laura Mircea were other top finishers for the Salukis. Parman earned a trip to the B-final in the 200-IM, where she placed sixth with a time of 2:06.99. Mircea placed second (227.15) in the one-meter dive B-final.
SIU will be back in action tomorrow for Day three at the MVC Championships, which will feature seven finals events. Preliminary events will begin at 11 a.m, followed by finals events at 6 p.m.
Along with following the MVC Championship Central page, follow @SIU_SwimDive on twitter, @SIUSwimandDive on Instagram and Saluki Swimming and Diving on Facebook for the latest updates on the Salukis.
Day 2 Standings
Missouri State - 309.5
Southern Illinois - 214
Illinois State - 185
Indiana State - 183.5
Northern Iowa - 172
Evansville - 110
Little Rock - 83
Valparaiso - 71
Players Mentioned
Free/Back
/ Swimming & Diving
Breast/IM
/ Swimming & Diving
Fly/Free
/ Swimming & Diving
Freestyle
/ Swimming & Diving
Diving
/ Swimming & Diving
Diving
/ Swimming & Diving
Back/Free
/ Swimming & Diving
Fly/IM
/ Swimming & Diving
Freestyle
/ Swimming & Diving
Back/Free/Fly
/ Swimming & Diving
Free/Breast
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