Faith Larsen shines for UNI swim and dive at MVC Showcase

Friday, October 21

Chicago, IL

5 PM / 10 AM

University of Northern Iowa

MVC Showcase

Faith Larsen shines for UNI swim and dive at MVC Showcase

10/22/2022 8:17:00 PM | Women's Swimming and Diving

CHICAGO - The UNI Swimming and Diving team were in action this weekend at the MVC Showcase (north meet) in Chicago at the UIC Flames Natatorium. The Panthers finished third of four teams with 734 points, coming up just eight points short of Illinois State for second. Indiana State won the meet with 913 points.

"This meet format was a great chance to measure ourselves against some really solid conference opponents with both the second and third place teams in the conference from last year," Head Coach Nick Lakin said. "Our athletes keep making progress through their dedication and attention to details, leading to some great contributions across the board."

Over the two day showcase-style meet, Northern Iowa claimed three victories. On day one, sophomore Faith Larsen edged Indiana State's Chloe Farro to win the 50 freestyle with a time of 23.77. On day two, Larsen struck again, winning the 100 freestyle with an in-season best of 52.05.

"I was excited coming into the meet since it was our first look at some strong conference opponents," Larsen said. "The experience with my teammates allowed me to swim relaxed and fast this weekend."

Junior Amber Finke notched the third Panther victory, taking the 200 backstroke with a 2:02.29, slightly off her time from earlier this season. Finke recorded an in-season best and second place finish in the 200 individual medley with a 2:09.69. On Friday, she took second place in the 100 backstroke with a 57.08.

The 100 backstroke also saw senior Helena Heuberger claim fifth with a 58.41 and freshman Rachel Lenz win the 'B-Final' heat with a 58.82, her fastest in the event this season. Lenz posted a strong showing in the 200 backstroke on Saturday, swimming a 2:08.76.

Sophomore Olivia Chambers, fresh off a two medal winning performance at the Citi Para Swimming World Series in Mexico, recorded all in-season best swims. She opened the weekend with a third place finish in the 400 individual medley with a 4:36.10 before taking fourth in the 1000 freestyle in a 10:38.24. On Saturday, Chambers took fifth in the 500 freestyle with a 5:11.23.

"Going through these mid-season meets, my main goal is to have fun," Chambers said. "That puts me in the right mindset to go fast, even when my body is tired and not rested."

Freshman Sydney Aird climbed into the all-time top-ten performances in the 100 breaststroke after a 1:05.62 performance on Friday. Her swim placed fifth in the event. Aird also placed fifth in the 200 breaststroke with a 2:25.88.

Junior Scout Bergwall and freshman Hannah Nedder were among the top performers in the 100 butterfly, swimming 58.45 and 58.32 respectively. Bergwall also recorded a season best of 2:09.64 for a fifth place finish in the 200 butterfly with sophomore Hallory Domnick finishing one place behind in a 2:10.78. Domnick claimed a third place finish in the 200 freestyle on Friday with a 1:54.56.

On the boards, junior Taylor Hogan finished sixth on 3-meter with a 248.65 and fifth on 1-meter with a 242.00. Freshman Erica Peters took second in the 'B-Final' on 1-meter with a 241.15, which ranks her as the eleventh all-time performance in team history. Sophomore Maddie Moran also picked up a tenth place finish on 3-meter.

The Panthers took second place in the 400 medley relay and 200 freestyle relay on Friday then third in the 200 medley relay and 400 freestyle relay on Saturday. The 400 medley relay team of Finke, Aird, Bergwall, and Larsen swam a 3:52.06, featuring a 51.26 anchor split. Larsen also led off the 200 freestyle relay team, including freshman Abby Lear, and juniors Clare Christensen and Taylor Short, with an in-season best of 23.63.

UP NEXT:
The Panthers will return to the pool in two weeks at the Coyote Extravaganza in Sioux Falls, South Dakota from Nov. 4-5. The multi-dual meet format features host South Dakota, South Dakota State, Sioux Falls, St. Thomas, and St. Cloud State.