Saturday afternoon, the Valparaiso University men’s and women’s swimming teams took on Eastern Illinois in their final dual meet of the 2018-19 season. The women fell by a score of 191-67, while the men fell by a score of 170-92 despite strong performances by junior Erica Martins (Hartland, Wis./Lake County Lutheran) on the women’s side and freshman Billy Bennett (Libertyville, Ill./Libertyville) and senior Dylan Kirar (Arvada, Colo./Ralston Valley) for the men.

How It Happened

• Martins was the only Valpo female to touch the wall first on Saturday, doing so in the 100-butterfly with a time of 1:01.91.
• Junior Emily Baumgartner (Fishers, Ind./Fishers) had a strong showing with a trio of second-place finishes in the 100 and 200- breaststroke with times of 1:14.34 and 2:39.82 respectively, as well as the 400-IM (5:05.00).
• Junior Paige Wright (Surprise, Ariz./Paradise Honors) also touched the wall second in the 200-free (1:59.85).
• On the men’s side, Bennett led the way with a pair of first-place touches. He won the 100-breaststroke (59.85) and the 200-breaststroke (2:16.82).
• Not to be outdone, Kirar finished first in the 1000-freestyle with a time of 10:03.47, and then went on to finish first in the 400-IM with a time of 4:16.03 as he continued his strong final season.
• Following Bennett’s lead, freshman Dominic May (Naperville, Ill./Naperville Central) outswam his competition in the 200-freestyle with a time of 1:45.82. Senior Mac Sogandares (Reston, Va./South Lakes) would finish right behind him in 1:47.65.

Up Next

Both teams return to action, tomorrow, January 27 when they travel to Indianapolis, Ind. to compete in the Butler Invitational.