Day 1 Results (PDF) | Day 2 Results (PDF) | Day 3 Results (PDF) | Day 4 Results (PDF) | Full Results (PDF)
INDIANAPOLIS -- Eastern Illinois men's and women's swimming squads completed second day action at the 2015 Summit League Championship on Thursday (Feb. 19), as the Panthers combined for seven EIU Top 10 marks over the course of the day.
Following lone 200-Medley and 800-Free Relay competition late Wednesday (Feb. 18) evening, where both EIU units set season-best marks in the men's 200-Medley and women's 800-Free relay, respectively, a full-day slate of prelims and finals commenced on Thursday (Feb. 19).
Newcomer Melissa Hepler (5:14.31) and sophomore Carolyn Belford (5:16.68) got things rolling for the Panthers as they each notched new Top 10 marks in the 500-Free prelims to now sit in 5th and 7th place in the EIU record books, respectively. Junior Jake Roberts then earned a place in the B Finals in the same 500-Free race, finishing up in 15th place.
Junior Kelsey Ferguson also competed in a B Final, as she earned a new 4th place Panther career mark in the morning prelims of the 200-IM off a 2:10.76 time.
Freshman Steve Fishman followed suit in his own 200-IM, advancing to the B Final with a 1:54.69 finish, with improved his previous EIU Top 10 mark as he now moves up to 5th in the rankings. Â Junior Dylan Ferguson also swam well in the 200-IM prelims, as he notched a 1:55.59 finish to add his name to the 7th spot in the Panther record books.
Fellow junior Kaylee Morris paced all Panthers with a 7th place finish in the A Finals of the 50-Free sprint, topping her previous school record mark with a 23.81 time in the championship race. Â Earlier in the day in prelims she actually tied her EIU record of 23.93 earned last season.
The EIU men also competed strong in the 50-Free as sophomore Shane Witzki improved his 6th place EIU mark in the prelims with a slightly faster 21.03 finish. Â He also was able to advance to the A Finals and earn a 7th place finish. Â Freshman Stephen Truchon also added his name to the EIU record books in the same event thanks to a 21.32 B Final mark which now sits as the 9th best overall in the school books.
Both Eastern units also combined for an impressive 25 additional season-best marks over the course of Thursdays action.
Team scoring wise, both Denver units hold respective commanding leads as the guys have 389 points and the women sit with 343. Â The Panthers currently rank 6th (80 points) for the men and 7th (66 points) on the ladies side.
League championships continue on Friday morning, with prelims and finals scheduled in the 400-Medley Relay, 400-IM, 100-Fly, 200-Free, 100-Breast, and 100-Back, plus senior recognitions.
... for more info, contact Bart Rettberg, Asst. SID
