Illinois State vs. Illinois

CHAMPAIGN, Illinois, November 11. THE Fighting Illini swimming and diving team earned a Senior Night victory against Illinois State, defeating the Redbirds, 190-110 on Friday night at the ARC Pool. TheIllini earned victories in 10 events, including a record-setting three-meter performance by senior Britni Fisher. The win marked the fourth victory in a row for the Orange and Blue, which improved to 4-2 on the season.
"We came out with a win, so that's always good," Illini head coach Sue Novitsky said. "Britni Fisher set a new school record, so that's very exciting and good to see her hard work paying off. It was one of those meets where we had some good swims and some sloppy things. We need to get back to work tomorrow morning. Yes, it's good to get the win, but we also want to execute to the best of our ability."

Senior Britni Fisher had a stellar night for the Orange and Blue, shattering a school record and personal best with her score of 319.65 on the three-meter board in the final home meet of her career.Fisher also won the one-meter diving event, breaking her previous personal record with a score of 285.46. The dive was good for the fourth-best one-meter score inschool history.

Meanwhile, junior Darragh McDermott earned second place on the three-meter board with a score of 274.35, setting a new personal best. Fellow junior Tessa Adams finished third in both the one- and three-meter events, with scores of 269.54 and 266.78, respectively.

Leading the Illini in the swimming events were senior Kristen Manias, who captured first place in the 100 free (53.11) and finished second in the 100 back (59.79), sophomore Erica Lynn, who earned first in the 100 breast (1:06.70) and second in the 200 breast (2:25.33), and senior Kelly Kunkel, who posted a first-place finish in the 200 free (1:54.60) and came in third in the 500 free (5:09.76).

An additional trio of Illini also finished first in individual events. Junior Erin Lamb won the 200 back (2:07.89), while classmate Kathleen Knight was victorious in the 200 fly (2:07.67), and Erin Rodriguez swam to a first-place finish in the 200 IM (2:12.33).

Four Orange and Blue swimmers earned two top-five finishes apiece. Senior Rachel Japp Joyce captured second-place in the 100 breast (1:07.31) and third in the 200 breast (2:26.63), while newcomer Alison Meng finished second in the 100 free (53.25) and fourth in the 50 free (25.07). Meanwhile, senior April McKee swam to third-place finishes in both the 200 free (1:54.96) and 100 fly (58.50), and sophomore Emma Williams earned third-place in the 200 fly (2:10.21) and tied freshman Hailey Booth for fourth-place in the 100 Fly (59.90).

Freshman Kayla Dlugopolski earned second in the 1000 free (10:28.14), while junior Kimberly Kalenda finished second in the 50 free (24.58). Seniors Torrey Loper and Brittany McGowan each swam to second-place finishes in the 200 back (2:08.65) and 100 fly (57.73), respectively.

Meanwhile, newcomer Alexa Chavez swam for a third-place finish in the 100 back (1:00.97), while sophomore Courtney Pope finished third in the 50 free (24.63), and classmate Marin Thompson earned third-place in the 200 IM (2:13.87).

The Illini relay teams captured first and second places in the 400 medley relay with times of 3:53.57 and 3:56.88, and the 200 free relay, completing the race with times of 1:35.97 and 1:37.82.

"It's special to win on Senior Night," Novitsky said. "It's always good to have a win at your final home meet as a senior and go out victorious. They will take it, but they know that we also have bigger team goals ahead of us to achieve and we want to keep striving for. We need to enjoy it but also realize that we can't rest on our laurels."

Up next, the Orange and Blue will travel to Evanston, Ill., to compete in the Northwestern Invitational from Nov. 17-19.

The above article is a press release submitted to Swimming World Magazine. It has been posted in its entirety without editing. Swimming World offers all outlets the chance to reach our audience by contacting us at Newsmaster@swimmingworldmagazine.com. However, Swimming World reserves the right to choose what material is posted.

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