The Saint Louis men and Xavier women came out on top of the standings at the Butler Invite this weekend. Coming in behind the Saint Louis men were Xavier and Ball State. Saint Louis and Youngstown State were 2nd and 3rd respectively on the women’s side.
Saint Louis:
MEET DETAILS
2016 Butler Invitational
Men, first of five teams
Women, second of six teams
Sunday, Jan. 24 | Fishers, Ind.
OVERVIEW
The SLU men’s swimming and diving team took first place in the 2016 Butler Invitational. The women’s team finished second of six teams. The Billiken men defeated Xavier, Ball State, Southern Illinois and Bellarmine while the women fell to Xavier and defeated Youngstown State, Southern Illinois, Butler and Bellarmine.
SLU FIRST PLACE FINISHERS
200-yard Medley Relay – Shane Cano, Jack Kane, Isaiah Williams, Brian North (1:34.77)
100-yard Backstroke – Shane Cano (52.47)
100-yard Breaststroke – Austin Nguyenphu (58.27)
200-yard Butterfly – Isaiah Williams (1:52.82)
200-yard Breaststroke – T.J. Decker (2:09.35)
500-yard Freestyle – Ryan McCoy (4:42.32)
100-yard Butterfly – Brendan Hulseman (51.30)
UP NEXT
The Billikens wrap up the 2015-16 regular season with a home meet against Eastern Illinois on Jan. 30. Prior to the start of the meet, Saint Louis will recognize the 2016 senior class. Events are set to begin at 2 p.m. at Simon Rec Center.
Xavier:
FISHERS, Ind. – The Xavier swim program closed out a busy weekend with a strong performance at the Butler Invite on Sunday at Fishers High School in Fishers, Ind. The Xavier women took the top spot while the men finished second in a meet where the Musketeers faced off against Saint Louis, Southern Illinois, Bellarmine as well as the host Bulldogs and Youngstown State on the women’s side and Ball State on the men’s side.
The Xavier women opened the event with a splash, taking first of seven first-place finishes in the 200 medley relay with Paxtyn Drew, Becca Titterton, Caroline Gaertner and Claire Brolsma touching the wall in 1:47.14.
The individual events opened with the mile, with Katie Kerr finishing in a time of 17:47.05 and Emily Wagner finishing in 17:49.28 to take third and fourth.
In the 200 free, Drew grabbed a first place finish and the 12th fastest time in school history with a time of 1:54.92.
The Musketeers followed their first individual gold with a one-two finish in the 100 back, with Kristen Liebert taking first with a time of 1:00.28 and Laura Dicus following her in with a time of 1:00.40 to take second.
Xavier took three of the top four spots in the 100 breast, led by Titterton (1:07.46) who took second. Hanna Martin (1:08.30) and Haley Dresner (1:08.31) placed third and fourth.
Maggie Kauffeld and Annie Cummins finished third and fourth in the 200 fly with times of 2:10.54 and 2:11.69, respectively.
Drew took the top spot again in the 200 back, finishing in 2:04.45. Liebert grabbed another top-three finish in the back stroke, taking third with a time of 2:09.24 and Wagner followed her in with a time of 2:11.49 to take fourth.
Xavier grabbed the top two spots in the 200 breast, led in by Martin’s time of 2:25.93. Titterton finished in a time of 2:28.86 to take second.
Mackenna Rife finished second in the 500 free with a time of 5:07.01.
Gaertner grabbed another first place finish for Xavier in the 100 fly with a time of 56.94.
Titterton added another gold for the Musketeers in the 100 IM with a time of 2:12.77.
The Xavier women closed out the event with a third place finish in the 400 free relay, with Brolsma, Molly Kroeger, Gaertner and Drew finishing in 3:36.93.
The Xavier women finished with a final score of 737, topping second place Saint Louis’ score of 555.
The Musketeer men opened the event with a second place finish in the 200 medley relay, with Erik Biernat, Matthew Dyer, Knox Hitt and Luke Johanns completing the race in 1:35.19.
In the opening individual event, Alex Wolfred placed third in the 1,650 free, entering Xavier’s records at 15th all-time with a time of 16:37.06. Nick Strader touched the wall just behind him to take fourth with a time of 16:37.06.
In the 100 back, Hitt and Rodrigo Suriano finished two-three, with times of 52.68 and 53.42, respectively.
Suriano grabbed another top-three finish in the 100 free, taking second with a time of 46.87.
Chase Baldwin grabbed the top spot in the 200 back, finishing in a time of 1:54.28.
Nick Foster grabbed a third place finish in the 500 free, finishing in a time of 4:46.07. Wolfred came in just behind him, taking fourth with a time of 4:47.23.
The Xavier men closed the event with a first place finish in the 400 free, with Luke Johanns, Matt Nephew, Sam Johanns and Suriano finishing in a time of 3:07.90.
The Xavier men finished with a total score of 607, trailing only Saint Louis on the leaderboard while finishing ahead of Ball State, Southern Illinois and Bellarmine.
Xavier returns to action on Friday, Jan. 29 at 5:00 when the Musketeers host the Akron Zips for XU’s senior day meet.
Butler:
INDIANAPOLIS – The Butler swim team placed fifth at the 7th Annual Butler Invitational over the weekend. The Bulldogs recorded 269.5 points while the winning team, Xavier, took first place with 738.5 points.
Xavier, Saint Louis, Youngstown State, Southern Illinois and Bellarmine joined Butler at the invitational. Saint Louis narrowly defeated Youngstown State for second place overall with 555.5 points. The third place team was Youngstown State and Southern Illinois edge BU for fourth place.
Audrey Gosnell was the top BU performer on Sunday with a second place finish in the 50 Yard Free. Gosnell recorded 17 points in the event for the Bulldogs by finishing the race at 24.60.
Gosnell also competed in the 200 Yard Medley Relay with teammates Tori Horton, Amanda Wagner and Rachel Robb. The unit placed fifth in the event with a time of 1:52.15.
The 400 Free Relay team also featured Gosnell swimming with Horton, Robb and Emma Green. This group placed sixth overall with a time of 3:43.64.
Gosnell rounded out the weekend with another impressive performance by taking fifth place in the 100 Yard Butterfly. She touched the wall at 1:00.08.
A strong member of each relay team, Horton also performed well as an individual with a fourth place finish in the 100 Back. She clocked in at 1:00.53.
Two Bulldogs ended the day with seventh place finishes. Andee Bauer earned her seventh place finish in the 1650 Free with a time of 18:34.85. Elizabeth Miller also earned a seventh place finish with her 1:58.96 time in the 200 Free.
Amanda Wagner gave Butler an eighth place finish in the 100 Breast (1:10.35). Her effort was matched by Emily Motill who placed eighth in the 200 Butterfly (2:15.05). Motill also posted a tenth place finish in the 200 IM (2:19.24).
In total, four more Bulldogs qualified for the upcoming BIG EAST Championship Meet slated for Feb. 24. Those swimmers included Motill in the 200 Fly (2:15.05), Miller in the 200 Free (1:58.96), Megan Rush in the 100 Fly (100.83) and Emily McCutchan in the 100 Back (1:02.41).
This week’s “Butler Swimmer of the Meet” award went to Rachel Banks who recorded lifetime-bests in the 100 back (1:03.84) and 500 free (5:33.72).
Team Scores
1) Xavier – 738.5
2) Saint Louis – 555.5
3) Youngstown State – 552.5
4) Southern Illinois – 313
5) Butler – 269.5
6) Bellarmine – 160
Ball State:
FISHERS, Ind. – The Ball State men’s swimming and diving team participated in the co-ed Butler Invitational Sunday afternoon and finished third of five men’s teams in competition with 534.5 points.
Saint Louis topped the men’s action with 744 points, while Xavier finished just before the Cardinals with 607 points. Southern Illinois came in fourth with 438 points, while Bellarmine rounded out the men’s action in fifth with a team score of 94.5.
Junior Austin Green marked the highest finish of the day for the Cardinals when he touched the wall second in the 50 freestyle in a 21.47 fashion. The time was a new season best for the Peru, Ind. native, and gave him momentum throughout his other races. Green went on to claim fourth in the 100 freestyle with a 47.25 finish, as well as fifth in both the 200 medley relay (1:38.08) with teammates Nate Slack, Zach Reichle and Jacob Eckert, and the 400 freestyle relay (3:12.53) with Logan Kisinger, Andrew Carlson and Cole Smith.
Junior Tanner Barton also stood out when he finished third of 17 in the 200 butterfly with a time of 1:55.10, as well as fourth of 15 in the 100 butterfly with a 51.84 final. Barton also teamed up with Kisinger, Zach Toman and Cole Smith to solidify a third place finish in the 200 medley relay (1:36.40) to open the Invite. Barton then combined with JD Middleton, Reichle, andBanistre Lienhart to post a seventh place finish in the 400 freestyle relay (3:20.18) to round out the day’s action.
In addition to participating in the 200 medley relay (1:38.08) for fifth, Slack earned his own individual successes throughout the Invitational. With a time of 53.90 and a fourth place finish, Slack was the top Ball State finisher in the 100 backstroke, as well as the top Cardinal time in the 200 backstroke with a 1:59.20 final for fifth. Slack then rounded out the day by taking on the 200 IM and finished eighth of 18 finishers with a time of 2:00.61.
The Ball State men’s swimming and diving team will next take on a MAC meet at Evansville on Jan. 29. The Cardinals will then round out regular season action at the Lewellen Aquatic Center with its senior day meet against Miami on Feb. 13.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State men’s swimming and diving action, follow @BallStateSports and @BallStateMSwim on Twitter.
Southern Illinois:
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. — In the team’s final multi-squad meet of the 2015-16 regular season prior to conference championships, the Saluki swimming and diving team came away with fourth place finishes on both the men’s and women’s side at the Butler Invitational.
The Salukis concluded Sunday’s meet with 18 top-three finishes, achieved by nine individuals and one relay team. Senior Till Pallmann led the team with three first place finishes, followed by Lauren Stocktonand Bryn Handley, each with two.
SIU hit its stride early in the meet as the Salukis swept the men’s and women’s 1650-yard freestyle swims, with Bryn Handley and Chris Cole earning the first place spots. From there, Till Pallmann came away with his first winning swim of the day in the 200-yard freestyle where he finished in 1:39.32, less than half a second off his best this season. Pallmann went on to earn first place in the 100-yard freestyle at 45.75 and the 200-yard individual medley at 1:53.03
Andre Brilhante competed in the 200-yard freestyle and 200-yard individual medley races as well, finishing in third and second places, respectively. Brilhante’s best finish of the day came in the 50-yard freestyle where he came out on top with a 21.35 finish.
Along with Brilhante’s win in the 50-yard freestyle, Lauren Stockton’s performance in the same race on the women’s side allowed the Salukis to sweep that race as well. Stockton finished in 24.50 to secure first place. She went on to earn first place in the 100-yard freestyle coming in at 52.57. Bryn Handley followed in second place at 52.72. Handley’s earned another first place finish of her own, taking the 500-yard freestyle title at 5:00.79, nearly seven seconds ahead of the second-place finisher.
Several other Salukis had notable finishes throughout the day in a variety of strokes. Patrick Hesse and Christian Taylor both came away with top-three finishes in the 100-yard breaststroke and 200-yard backstroke, respectively. Saluki newcomer Filippo Dell’Olio also had two top finishes, earning second in the 500-yard freestyle at 4:43.68 and third in the 100-yard butterfly at 51.80. In his two meets as a Saluki thus far, Dell’Olio has finished in the top-three in each of his races. For the women, freshmanEmma Brazeau had a strong showing in the 100-yard butterfly, finishing second with a 58.01 mark.
The meet concluded with the Saluki men earning third place in the 400-yard freestyle relay with a 3:08.01 finish, the third best for the Salukis this season.
“Some of our swims were good, but the times were not. Some of our races were good, but the outcome was not,” Saluki head coach Rick Walkersaid. “It’s that time of year where it’s getting tough, and I know the women are really ready to rest. The men still have some work to do, but we will be prepping the women for their tapers.”
The teams will take a familiar opponent in Evansville in two weeks at home in the final meet before conference championships. The women will then host the MVC Championships beginning Feb. 17, while the men will travel to Michigan in early March for the MAC Championships.
*NOTE: Sophomore Kelsie Walker was not listed in last week’s preview despite her national rankings, which was an unintentional oversight. Walker ranks 27th in the 400 freestyle, 61st in the 500 freestyle, 13th in the 800 freestyle and 90th in the 1650 freestyle.
Youngstown State:
Fishers, Ind. – The Youngstown State swimming and diving team finished third at the six-team Butler Invitational on Sunday. YSU was just three points behind Saint Louis for second place at the event.
Junior Hannah Reynolds and freshman Zsani Csado earned individual event wins while the Penguins also finished first in the 400-yard freestyle relay.
Reynolds won the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:07.17 finishing first by .29 seconds. She added a third-place finish in the 200 breast clocking in at 2:30.96.
YSU went 1-2 in the 100-yard butterfly as Csado was first (2:05.55) and Madison Aranda was second (2:05.70). Csado also came in third in the 100 fly with a time of 58.69 seconds.
Aranda had a second-place finish in the 1,650-yard freestyle with a time of 17:40.14 and was third in the 500 free at 5:07.49.
Sophomore Victoria Orosz had a pair of second-place swims at the Invite. She was second in the 200 free with a time of 1:55.79 and posted a 2:06.77 in the 200-yard backstroke.
Kolbrun Jonsdottir had a pair of third-place performances. Jonsdottir was third in the 50 freestyle with a time of 24.82 seconds and the 100 freestyle clocking a time of 53.71 seconds.
Freshman Haley Fisher was third in the 200 IM with a time of 2:15.01.
YSU capped off the meet with a win in the 400 yard freestyle relay. Jonsdottir, Orosz, Csado, Aranda won with a time of 3:33.01.
YSU is next in action on Saturday when it visits Saint Francis (Pa.).
Final Team Scores
1. Xavier – 738.5
2. Saint Louis – 555.5
3. YSU – 552.5
4. Southern Illinois – 313
5. Butler – 269.5
6. Bellarmine – 160
Swimming news courtesy of Saint Louis, Xavier, Butler, Ball State, Southern Illinois, and Youngstown State Swimming & Diving.