Recap | Salukis Finish as Runner-Up in Men’s MVC Championships

Calendar

Oct 3

4 PM / 10 AM

Swimming & Diving

Missouri State

Oct 10

3 PM

Swimming & Diving

UIC

Oct 11

11 AM

Swimming & Diving

Northwestern/Miami (OH)

Oct 24

5 PM / 11 AM

Swimming & Diving

Illinois/Illinois State (Women)

Nov 13

Swimming & Diving

A3 Performance Invite

Nov 20

Swimming & Diving

Missouri

Jan 9

2 PM

Swimming & Diving

Purdue (Men)

Jan 10

1 PM

Swimming & Diving

Indiana State/Evansville

OXFORD, Ohio – The Men's Missouri Valley Conference Championships concluded Saturday night, and Southern Illinois' squad placed second with 691.5 team points. However, SIU still managed to break several records and grab a few end of year awards during the final day of competition.

"This week was an extremely successful culmination of more than six months of hard work put in by this men's team," says head coach Geoff Hanson. "I am really proud of the resiliency and toughness these guys showed all week. Seven program records and seven event wins highlighted our top end, and every one of our 20 scoring team swimmers and divers put up points showing our depth as a team. Lastly having the Elite 18 winner, Alex Cimera, the freshman diver of the year, Lucas Lauzon, and the swimmer of the year, Alex Santiago, made for a great end to the meet."

Inside the Results

Santiago was crowned the 100-yard freestyle champion while the 400-yard free relay team also took home the gold.
A Salukis broke at least one record in four different events throughout day four.
Three Salukis were tapped for yearly awards: Santiago was named Swimmer of the Year, Lauzon was the Freshman Diver of the Year, and Cimera was given the Elite 18 Award for his academic and athletic achievements.

How it Happened

Prelims
The day started with the 200-yard backstroke prelims, and Willem Huggins secured a spot in the A-finals after placing first with a time of 1:45.07; that time reset the MVC Championship record. Juraj Barcot finished eighth in the same event to also head to the A-finals, and Alex Brodsky and John Cameron both locked up spots in the B-finals.

The 100-yard freestyle was up next, and Santiago led the prelims with his MVC Championship-record time of 42.98. Aj Terry and Donat Csuvarszki made the A-finals along with Santiago, and Rodrigo Ramos Chávez secured a B-finals appearance.

Henrique Pacheco Januario rounded out the podium in the 200-yard breaststroke prelims to acquire a A-finals spot, and Tiago Faleiros just made the A-finals cut as well.

Prelims ended with the 200-yard butterfly, and Nicolas Lanuza was the only Salukis to make the A-finals. Hazem Aboustate and Nate Worsham made the B-finals.

Finals
The first finals event of the afternoon was the 1650-yard freestyle. Joshua Aceves was the highest placing Saluki in the event, finishing sixth with a time of 15:48.87.

Huggins came in fourth in the 200-yard backstroke finals to start the night's slate of events. But SIU found their way back to the podium in emphatic fashion in the 100-yard freestyle. Santiago took home the gold after his swim of 41.95, which is a new program, MVC, and MVC Championships record. Behind Santiago on the podium was Terry in second and Csuvarszki in third.

The three-meter diving finals were also concluded Saturday night. Oliver Mebs just missed out on the podium after his 319.00 point performance earned him fourth place.

Pacheco grabbed silver in the 200-yard breaststroke after his swim of 1:57.54, and Southern's final medal came in the 400-yard free relay. The Saluki team of Terry, Csuvarszki, Santiago, and Benedek Andor won gold with their time of 2:52.31, a new program, MVC, and MVC Championships best.

Yearly Awards
Following the conclusion of finals, three Salukis were awarded yearly titles.

Santiago was named the conference Swimmer of the Year. The senior had a historic MVC Championships to cap off a fantastic season. During the championships, Santiago collected seven gold medals and broke numerous records as a both an individual and as part of a relay team.

Lauzon was awarded the title of MVC Freshman Diver of the Year. During the MVC Championships, Lauzon had two top-11 finishes in finals events. This season, Lauzon collected a pair of gold medals.

Finally, Cimera was given the Elite 18 Award for academic and athletic achievement. Cimera was a part of the MVC Championship 200-yard medley relay team while collecting seven other first-place finishes this season.

Up Next
The next time SIU could be in action is the Mizzou Qualifier, taking place from March 1-2. It is yet to be decided if and who Southern will send to the qualifier.

Follow the Salukis
Keep up with all the latest news and information on the swim and dive teams by following the them on X at @SIU_SwimDive, on Instagram at @siu_swimdive , and on Facebook at facebook.com/SIUSwimDive. Fans can also download the "Salukis" Mobile App on the App Store or Google Play Store.

Calendar

Upcoming Events