NASHVILLE, Tenn. – In their final meet before the Missouri Valley Conference Championships, Southern Illinois’ women’s swim and dive team traveled to face off with Vanderbilt on Saturday afternoon. Despite some tough competition from the Commodores, the Salukis pulled away with the 154-108 victory.
“Today was a great opportunity for the Dawgs to compete on the road in the SEC, and the women took full advantage of it,” said head coach Geoff Hanson. “We are all proud of the overall effort, and to come away with a win to finish the dual meet season with a 10-1 record is fantastic. With the MVC Championships just over three weeks away, these ladies are focused on what needs to be done to be at our best.”
Inside the Results
- Across the day’s 14 events, 26 podium spots belonged to SIU individuals and relay teams. That included nine first-place finishers.
- Olivia Herron had herself quite a day. Not only did she meet NCAA “B” standards three times, she also set new MVC records in the 100-yard breaststroke and 400-yard IM.
- Celia Pulido also set met “B” standards twice.
How it Happened
The day started with a pair of podium finishes for the Salukis, as their “A” team secured first place in the 200-yard medley thanks to Herron, Pulido, Bea Padron, and Zaria Terry . Southern also grabbed third place in the same event with their “B” team, comprised of Liseska Gallegos Gutierrez, Ali Robertson, Jasmine Rau, and Masha Zhukova.
Moving into individual events, Ale Hoyos Horvath finished third in the 1000-yard freestyle event with a time of 10:27.06, which was a near 10-second improvement over her previous career best in the 1000-yard freestyle. Then Susanna Hernandez stood atop the podium after the 200-yard freestyle.
The first NCAA “B” standard of the afternoon was hit by Pulido, whose 52.23 100-yard backstroke earned her first place. Right behind her in the event was fellow Saluki, Gallegos. Next up was the 100-yard breaststroke, where Herron finished first with a time of 59.78 seconds; not only does this time meet NCAA “B” standards, but it is also a new SIU and MVC record. Both of those previous records belonged to Herron as well. Joining Herron in the 100-yard breaststroke top-three was Madalyn Booker .
Next in the schedule was the 200-yard butterfly, which Tamara De la Torre finished third in. The first podium sweep of the day for either team came during the 50-yard freestyle, with Zhukova, Hernandez, and Terry finishing in that order; Zhukova’s time of 23.21 is a new career-best for the junior. Hernandez and Terry found themselves right back in the top-three after the 100-yard freestyle, with Hernandez taking second and Terry finishing third.
Another “B” standard was met by Pulido in the 200-yard backstroke event thanks to her swim of 1:56.17, which secured first-place in the event; Gallegos was the runner-up in the event. Yet another “B” standard was achieved in the 200-yard breaststroke, this time by Herron and her first-place swim of 2:09.38. Booker also finished top-three in the 200-yard backstroke.
Hoyos set a new career-best when she finished as the runner-up in the 500-yard freestyle with her time of 4:57.73. Meanwhile, Fernanda Sánchez finished right behind Hoyos in the same event. Moving to the 100-yard butterfly, Padron and Rau finished less than a second apart to grab second and third place respectively.
Herron had another stellar race in the 400-yard IM, taking first with her time of 4:12.96. This performance meets NCAA “B” standards while also shattering the SIU and MVC record for the event. Also finishing top-three in the 400-yard IM was Brooklyn Anderson. The day concluded with the 400-yard freestyle relay. SIU’s “A” team, made up of Terry, Hernandez, Pulido, and Ava Rines, took first, and the “B” team, featuring Gallegos, Zhukova, Robertson, and Jocelyn Reynolds finished in third place.
Up Next
Next up for the Salukis is the MVC Championships. The men’s team is up first, with their championship taking place from February 19-22 in Oxford, Ohio. Then, the women’s squad travels to Des Moines, Iowa, for their Championships from February 26-March 1.
