Ball State vs Bellarmine
- February 3, 2024
- Louisville, Ky.
- SCY (25 yards)
- Results
Courtesy: Ball State Sports
LOUISVILLE, KY – – In its final dual of the 2023-24 regular season, the Ball State women’s swimming team won nine of 11 events to score a 145.5-58.5 victory over Bellarmine Saturday afternoon at the Mary T. Meagher Aquatic Center.
Freshman Alexa Von Holtz turned in another solid performance for the Cardinals (5-1), winning both the 200 freestyle (1:57.46) and the 100 butterfly (57.84) to up her individual win total to 16 on the year.
BSU’s swimmers opened the day with a winning time of 1:48.27 in the 200 medley relay, as junior Lilia Newkirk, freshman Julia Ofman, junior Hannah Jones and freshman Angelina Eliacin started a string of four straight event wins for the Cardinals.
Senior Marcella Ribeiro gave Ball State its first individual win with a final wall touch of 10:37.64 in the 1,000 freestyle.
The Cardinals also received individual wins from Jones in the 50 freestyle (25.06), sophomore Alyssa Messenger in the 100 freestyle (54.74), sophomore Payton Kelly in the 100 backstroke (59.33) and sophomore Kiran Stauffer in the 500 freestyle (5:17.34).
BSU would go on to close the meet with sophomore Haley Sakbun, Messenger, sophomore Callie Tuma and Kelly combining to win the 400 freestyle relay in 3:38.36.
Ball State’s divers return to action next weekend at the Miami Classic (Feb. 9-10), while the entire squad enters the final training run for the 2024 MAC Women’s Swimming & Diving Championships held Feb. 28 – March 2 at Ohio.
LOUISVILLE, KY – – The Ball State men’s swimming program won eight of 11 events Saturday afternoon to earn a 127-78 victory over Bellarmine at the Mary T. Meagher Aquatic Center.
Sophomore Benjamin Clarkston was the big winner for the Cardinals (3-1), taking top honors in both the 50 (21.20) and 100 (57.98) freestyles. He also swam anchor for the first-place 200 medley relay (1:33.37).
Clarkston was joined in the opening relay by junior Ethan Pheifer, freshman Aidan Biddle and junior Michael Burns.
Freshman Tommy Brunner followed with a time of 9:46.92 in the day’s longest event, the 1000 freestyle. It was the first of four straight individual event victories for the Cardinals.
The next came from Senior Owen Chaye in the 200 freestyle (1:43.11), and after Clarkston’s win in the 50 freestyle, junior Max Kruglov touched the wall first in the 200 IM (1:56.19).
The Cardinals would close out the meet by winning the final two events, starting with Biddle in the 100 breaststroke (57.98).
Senior Joey Garberick, Pheifer, sophomore Jacob Siewers and Chaye followed by earning a final wall touch of 3:09.94 to win the 400 freestyle relay.
The Ball State men’s swimming & diving program is set to close the regular season next weekend with the divers competing at the Miami Classic (Feb. 9-10) and the team competing at Southern Illinois (Feb. 10).
Courtesy: Bellarmine Athletics
LOUISVILLE, Ky. — In its final regular-season meet, Bellarmine University swimming earned five top finishes in a Saturday dual with Ball State at the Mary T. Meagher Aquatic Center.
Junior Alexandra Pierce took top honors in the women’s 200 IM (2:08.77) and the 100 breaststroke (1:06.40). Junior John Paul Metzner touched the wall first in the men’s 100 butterfly (50.32), as did freshman Colin Jackson in the 100 backstroke (52.70) and freshman Evan Jones in the 500 freestyle (4:46.85).
Junior Johnnise Garcia tied for runner-up honors in the women’s 1000, and freshman Lily Wolfe placed second in the 500 freestyle.
Sophomore Sam Jones was the runner-up in the men’s 1000 freestyle. Freshman Evan Dickson placed second in the 200 freestyle, as did junior Brandon Thomas in the 200 IM, Sam Jones in the 500 freestyle and senior Andrew Nguyen in the 100 breaststroke.
Senior Carter Reynolds, Nguyen, Metzner and Jackson placed second in the 200 medley relay.
It was Senior Day for Bellarmine. The Knights honored Morgan Bender, Mackenzie Conger, Emily Kuprion, Grace Lough, Megan McEwen, Caroline McMillin, Liz Stevenson, Megan Wills, Ashley Owen, Tyler Diercks, Nicholas Green, Nguyen, Reynolds, Kenton Whiteley, Greyson Williams and Keegan Henderson.
Ball State won 127-78 on the men’s side and 145.5-58.5 on the women’s.
Bellarmine will compete Feb. 21-24 in the ASUN Championships at the University of Tennessee Aquatics Center.