Saturday, January 21, 2006

David Peterson (Schererville, Ind./Highland H.S.) and Travers Smith (Huntley, Ill./Huntley H.S.) each won two events for the Crusaders Saturday afternoon, but Valparaiso dropped the dual meet to Eastern Illinois 139-92 at the Athletics-Recreation Center pool.

Peterson notched his first victory in the 400 individual medley, finishing in 4:17.62, a time that improved on his third-best all-time mark in the event. He followed that effort with a win in 2:10.04 in the 200 breaststroke, which ranks second-best in the Mid-Continent Conference this season.

Smith captured the 200 butterfly in 2:00.17, the third-best effort in Crusader history. His other victory came in the 200 freestyle, as he touched the wall in 1:47.39.

Bob Pedersen (Urbana, Ill./Urbana H.S.) turned in one of his best races in his final home meet. The senior, racing in the 1000 freestyle for the first time in his collegiate career, won the event in 10:17.92, which ranks third-best all-time at Valpo.

Dan Cisek (Willowbrook, Ill./Hinsdale South) brought home the other individual victory for the Brown and Gold, capturing the 500 freestyle in 4:59.71.

During the meet, Pedersen and David Kesler (Beverly Hills, Mich./Birmingham Groves H.S.) were honored as part of Senior Day, as they competed in their final home meet.

Valparaiso (2-10) concludes its 2005-2006 campaign at the Mid-Continent Conference Championships February 16-18, hosted by IUPUI in Indianapolis, Ind. Preliminaries each day will begin at 10 a.m. CST, followed by finals at 5:30 p.m.