McLean County Times

NORMAL, Ill.-- The Illinois State Swimming and Diving team secured victories in both diving and swimming events on the first day of their dual meet against Ohio University. Eva Reyes achieved a score of 280.05 on the three-meter board, while Emma Feltzer won the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 24:07, earning nine points for her team. The Redbirds will continue their competition at Horton Pool tomorrow, following a day one final score of 89-42 in favor of Ohio.

Head Coach Riley Hilbrandt expressed satisfaction with the team's performance after their previous meet against Indiana State. "Our team wanted to focus on three big things today: attack, bring the energy, and putting in effort. From our team two weeks ago, I've already seen this team grow together both as a group and individually. I'm excited to see them race a typical meet line up tomorrow and let it rip! Overall, I think it's only positive and good vibes to bring into day two," Hilbrandt said.

Highlights from the day's events included:

- In the 50-yard butterfly, Mia Snow (25.89) and Giulia Basco (26.29) finished closely in fourth and fifth place.

- Chloe Tyler narrowly missed winning the 50-yard backstroke with a time of 26:48.

- Sydney Hoff took fourth place in the 50-yard breaststroke with a time of 31.07.

- Emma Feltzer claimed first place in the 50-yard freestyle with her earlier mentioned time.

- Sylvia Admire and Adi Luker tied for fourth place in the same event with times of 25:40.

In relay events:

- The first team comprising Feltzer/Turken/Tyler/Snow finished second in the 200 freestyle relay.

- The second team featuring Hoff/Admire/Hervey/Basco placed fourth.

- The third team consisting of Hailey Fris/Avery Watson/Hope Westphal/Payton Dorman came fifth.

The Redbirds will return to Horton Pool for day two against Ohio University before embarking on three consecutive road meets at Southern Illinois/Illinois-Champaign (November 1), Purdue (November 22-23), and the US Open in Greensboro N.C. (December 4-7).

For updates on Illinois State swimming & diving, visit GoRedbirds.com or follow them on social media platforms including "X" (RedbirdSwimDive), Facebook (Illinois State Swim & Dive), and Instagram (@redbirdwswimdive).

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