Saturday, February 17, 2007

Valparaiso set two more school records and recorded three second place finishes on the final day of the Mid-Continent Conference Swimming and Diving Championships held Saturday in Indianapolis, Ind.

Elizabeth Thompson (Norman, Okla./North H.S.) finished second on the day in the 200 butterfly with a time of 2:09.03, less than a second off the pace. She shattered her own previous school record of 2:11.70 by more than two seconds.

Anna Orwick (Broadlands, Ill./Champaign Centennial H.S.) also earned her second runner-up finish of the meet, finishing second in one-meter diving. The freshman registered a score of 209.90.

The Crusaders also concluded the meet in style with another school record while finishing second in the 400 freestyle relay. Jaclyn Krause (Rochester, Mich./Notre Dame Prep H.S.), Rachel Majercik (Schaumburg, Ill./Conant H.S.), Kati Smethurst (Grand Ledge, Mich./Grand Ledge H.S.), and Amanda Gregory (Carmel, Ind./Carmel H.S.) touched the wall in 3:32.76, breaking the 1995 record by more than four seconds.

Krause also was sixth in the 100 freestyle with her time of 52.17 seconds, the second fastest time ever at Valpo. Katie Cissell (Bloomington, Ind./Edgewood H.S.) was Valpo's top finisher in the mile, turning in a time of 18:47.70, the seventh fastest time in school history in the event while placing 11th overall.

Elise Bugenske (Saginaw, Mich./Nouvel Catholic Central H.S.) tied for 10th in the 200 backstroke, finishing in 2:15.74 while teammate Karen Berg (Glendale, Ariz./Deer Valley H.S.) was just .18 seconds behind her.

In the 200 breaststroke, Amy Young (LaPorte, Ind./LaPorte H.S.) was the top Crusader competitor, turning in a time of 2:43.60, just missing the finals.

As a team, Valpo finished in sixth place with 339.5 points. Oakland won the league title with 902 point while Western Illinois was second with 525 points. The Crusaders have now concluded their 2006-2007 season.