Wednesday, February 26
Des Moines, IA
Southern Illinois University
at
Women's MVC Championships
Recap | Women’s Swim and Dive Concludes Trip to MVC Championships
03/02/2025 | 12:13:00 | Swimming & Diving
Waukee, Iowa – The 2025 Women's Missouri Valley Conference Swim and Dive Championships concluded on Saturday, and Southern Illinois finished as runner-up at the event with a team score of 1331. Following the events, the Salukis raked in plenty of post-season honors, including several All-Conference members and two specialty awards.
How it Happened
Prelims
The 200-yard backstroke kicked off Saturday's prelims and Salukis filled up the top-three spots. Celia Pulido took first, Brooklyn Anderson was second, and Liseska Gallegos Gutierrez came in third to all make the A-finals. Meanwhile, Andrea Santos Arambula made the B-finals.
Susanna Hernandez finished eighth in the 100-yard freestyle to claim a A-finals spot. Bea Padron and Zaria Terry were both top-16 to head the B-finals.
In the 200-yard breaststroke, Olivia Herron was the event's first-place finisher with her time of 2:11.47, which set a new MVC championship record while securing an A-finals spot. Madalyn Booker and Ali Robertson both grabbed B-finals spots in the event.
The 200-yard butterfly was up next and Fernanda Sánchez was the lone Saluki to make the A-finals. As for B-finalists, Jules Atkinson, Tamara De la Torre, and Sam Vega rounded out the list.
Finals
Finals began with the 200-yard backstroke, and Pulido was crowned the champion with her time of 1:54.78. SIU filled up the event's other two podium spots as well, with Gallegos taking second and Anderson finishing in third.
The 100-yard freestyle was up next and Hernandez was the highest ranked Saluki, coming in eighth after she posted a time of 50.24.
Another SIU swimmer claimed gold in the 200-yard breaststroke. Herron came in first after finishing her swim in 2:10.1, which was a new MVC Championship record. Then, in the 200-yard butterfly, Sanchez placed seventh to lead all Southern swimmers.
The three-meter diving finals was the final diving event, and Farida Moussa finished as the conference runner-up with her score of 299.60. Finally, the 400-yard freestyle relay ended the championships, and SIU's squad of Padron, Hernandez, Pulido, and Terry grabbed silver in the event.
End of Year Awards
Following the conclusion of the events, 12 Salukis were given end of season honors.
Three Salukis were named All-Conference Honorable Mentions: Sanchez, Booker, and Jasmine Rau. Meanwhile, nine team members made the All-MVC First Team: Anderson, Gallegos, Hernandez, Herron, Moussa, Padron, Pulido, Robertson, and Terry.
Then, Gallegos was named MVC Freshman Swimmer of the Year. The San Luis Potosi, Mexico, native was MVC Freshman of the Week three times this season and earned three silver medals at this year's MVC Championships.
Lastly, Pulido was crowned the MVC Swimmer of the Year. Pulido was Swimmer of the Week once this season, but ended with a dominant performance at the MVC Championships, She earned six gold medals while breaking numerous records throughout the four days of events.
Up Next
Next up on the schedule for SIU's women swim and dive squad is the Diving Zones event, hosted in Columbus, Ohio, from March 12-14.
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.
How it Happened
Prelims
The 200-yard backstroke kicked off Saturday's prelims and Salukis filled up the top-three spots. Celia Pulido took first, Brooklyn Anderson was second, and Liseska Gallegos Gutierrez came in third to all make the A-finals. Meanwhile, Andrea Santos Arambula made the B-finals.
Susanna Hernandez finished eighth in the 100-yard freestyle to claim a A-finals spot. Bea Padron and Zaria Terry were both top-16 to head the B-finals.
In the 200-yard breaststroke, Olivia Herron was the event's first-place finisher with her time of 2:11.47, which set a new MVC championship record while securing an A-finals spot. Madalyn Booker and Ali Robertson both grabbed B-finals spots in the event.
The 200-yard butterfly was up next and Fernanda Sánchez was the lone Saluki to make the A-finals. As for B-finalists, Jules Atkinson, Tamara De la Torre, and Sam Vega rounded out the list.
Finals
Finals began with the 200-yard backstroke, and Pulido was crowned the champion with her time of 1:54.78. SIU filled up the event's other two podium spots as well, with Gallegos taking second and Anderson finishing in third.
The 100-yard freestyle was up next and Hernandez was the highest ranked Saluki, coming in eighth after she posted a time of 50.24.
Another SIU swimmer claimed gold in the 200-yard breaststroke. Herron came in first after finishing her swim in 2:10.1, which was a new MVC Championship record. Then, in the 200-yard butterfly, Sanchez placed seventh to lead all Southern swimmers.
The three-meter diving finals was the final diving event, and Farida Moussa finished as the conference runner-up with her score of 299.60. Finally, the 400-yard freestyle relay ended the championships, and SIU's squad of Padron, Hernandez, Pulido, and Terry grabbed silver in the event.
End of Year Awards
Following the conclusion of the events, 12 Salukis were given end of season honors.
Three Salukis were named All-Conference Honorable Mentions: Sanchez, Booker, and Jasmine Rau. Meanwhile, nine team members made the All-MVC First Team: Anderson, Gallegos, Hernandez, Herron, Moussa, Padron, Pulido, Robertson, and Terry.
Then, Gallegos was named MVC Freshman Swimmer of the Year. The San Luis Potosi, Mexico, native was MVC Freshman of the Week three times this season and earned three silver medals at this year's MVC Championships.
Lastly, Pulido was crowned the MVC Swimmer of the Year. Pulido was Swimmer of the Week once this season, but ended with a dominant performance at the MVC Championships, She earned six gold medals while breaking numerous records throughout the four days of events.
Up Next
Next up on the schedule for SIU's women swim and dive squad is the Diving Zones event, hosted in Columbus, Ohio, from March 12-14.
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.
Players Mentioned
IM/Back
/ Swimming & Diving
Fly/IM
/ Swimming & Diving
Breast/Fly
/ Swimming & Diving
/ Swimming & Diving
/ Swimming & Diving
Free/Breast
/ Swimming & Diving
Breast/IM
/ Swimming & Diving
Dive
/ Swimming & Diving
Free/Fly
/ Swimming & Diving
Back/Fly
/ Swimming & Diving
Free/Fly
/ Swimming & Diving
Breast/Free/IM
/ Swimming & Diving
IM/Free
/ Swimming & Diving
Back
/ Swimming & Diving
Free/Fly
/ Swimming & Diving
Free/IM
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