INDIANAPOLIS – The UIndy swimming & diving teams stayed out of the snow on Monday and competed in a tri-meet with Toledo and Findlay in the Ruth Lilly Fitness Center. The men were a step ahead of the Oilers, outlasting them on a final score of 172-67. The women ended the meet taking the win against Findlay (150-85), but suffering their first dual-meet loss of the season to Toledo (123-118).

"All five teams provided some great racing going into winter break," noticed Head Coach Jason Hite. "We'll have to stay focused on our training during the break so we can be a force come February and March."

Diving continued to be a emphasis on the Greyhounds, as they swept the men's events and placed second and third on the women's boards. The men had two different winners, with Cade Hammond outlasting the field on a final score of 331.65 on one-meter and Payton Staman claiming the three-meter with 297.52 points. Cassie Kury led the women, placing second on both the one-meter and three-meter. Her one-meter score totaled to 248.02 points, and her three-meter contained a final of 214.72 points.

Senior Melanie Arnold kicked off the Greyhounds' individual events with a victory in the women's 1000 free. The New Jersey native touched the wall on a final time of 10:30.41. Freshman Noah Jamison replied with a win in the men's event, as his 9:47.51 final time was one of his best performances in the regular season.

The Greyhounds had three straight events where student-athletes emerged victorious, with the men even taking the top two spots in the 200 free. Christian Hedeen led the way with a dominant 1:42.67, while Kael Yorke was shortly behind on a finish of 1:43.71. Leticia Vaselli and Jan Zuchowicz combined to sweep the 50 free for the Greyhounds, with Vaselli finishing on top of the women's event with a time of 24.24 and Zuchowicz slamming home a 20.94 time.

"Both on the boards and in the pool, we looked incredibly strong," explained sophomore Andrew Rottinghaus. "It was great to see two teams push us to our limits and challenge us before February and March."

Cody Liske showed his versatility in this meet for the Greyhounds, claiming the men's 200 IM on a thrilling 26.37 free split. Liske's 1:57.31 overall time was good for his fastest career 200 IM finish. Darian Murray and Yorke paired up for another sweep for the Greyhounds, this one coming in the 100 fly. Murray came home on a strong final 50 yards, as the senior finished on a final time of 56.79 for the victory. Yorke's time was the only one under 50 seconds, as he ended the race in 49.36.

Victor Antonon continued a dominant senior campaign, taking flight in the 100 free for another victory. Antonon ended around a second and a half ahead of the field with a final time of 46.48. UIndy showed more strength with their distance crew, once again sweeping the meet on both sides in the 500 free. Sasha Shatskikh ran the show for the women, providing the fastest 100 yards in the field for a final time of 5:07.77. Liske's 4:49.05 time credited him with a second win on the day, claiming the men's side of the 500. 

UIndy finished strong to take the final three events of the meet, including the men's 100 breast, women's 200 free relay and the men's 200 free relay. Zuchowicz finished on top of the men's 100 breast, boasting the only second-50 split under 30 seconds for a final time of 56.53.

The women showcased a stellar 200 free relay, featuring Shatskikh, Johanna Buys, Murray and Krystal Caylor to bring the Greyhounds a 1:37.5 time. The men capped off a stellar day with two members of the relay under 21-second splits, finalizing a 1:23.8 victory. The relay consisted of Antonon, I'Likai Crompton-English, Jeron Thompson and Hedeen.

"We competed hard in every event with everything we had today," noted sophomore Ally Lunzmann. "At this point of the season we're all exhausted, but we kept pushing ourselves throughout the entirety of the meet."

UP NEXT
The Greyhounds will spend the holidays training for the upcoming championship season and will first compete in a top-10 heavy DII quad meet the second weekend of 2020. UIndy host Davenport, Lindenwood and Grand Valley State on January 11 at 2 p.m. in the Ruth Lilly Fitness Center.