The IU swimming and diving team came out fired up and ready to go Saturday against in-state rival Purdue.
With their final chance to defend their home pool, the Hoosiers defeated the Boilermakers on the men’s side 187-107 and on the women’s side 185.5-114.5.
“Any time you come out with a win against the Boilers, it’s a good day for the Hoosiers,” IU Coach Ray Looze said. “I was really pleased with how our seniors performed. Their leadership has been invaluable to us for the season.”
Relays have been a point of difficulty for the Hoosiers during the course of the season, but Saturday they finally got it right. Winning the men’s and women’s 200 medley and 400 freestyle is something they were pleased with, Looze said.
Freshman swimmer Vini Lanza is new to the men’s roster this semester and had his first taste of collegiate victory as part of the 200-medley team. Lanza, a Brazilian native, also recorded a first-place finish in the 100 butterfly and third-place finish in the 200 butterfly.
“It was a great experience to see everyone cheering for each other,” Lanza said. “It creates a good atmosphere to swim in. For being new and where we’re at in the season, I think it went pretty well.”
Ian Finnerty, another freshman addition to the men’s team, recorded his first victory in the 200 individual medley as well.
“They’re learning on the fly, and it’s made a big difference for us to have these two top freshmen recruits,” Looze said. “They give us more depth on the men’s side where we needed it. It’s good to see them get in there and contribute right away.”
On the men’s side, highlights include 1-2-3-4 sweeps in the 200 freestyle and 1,000 freestyle. The men also had first-place finishes in the 50 freestyle, 100 backstroke, 100 breaststroke, 100 butterfly, 100 freestyle, 200 butterfly, 200 IM, 200 backstroke and 500 freestyle.
First place finishes for the women came in the 100 backstroke, 100 breaststroke, 100 butterfly, 200 freestyle, 200 backstroke, 200 breaststroke and 200 IM.
Lips had a memorable Senior Day by finishing first with the 400 freestyle relay team, second in the 1,000 freestyle and third in the 500 freestyle.
“This meet was a lot of fun,” Lips said. “There was a lot of energy, and seeing the bleachers completely filled with IU gear is a great feeling.”
The IU women also swept 1-2-3 in the 50 freestyle and 200 butterfly.
Off the platform and 1-meter springboard, the IU divers continued to work to find consistency with the right sequence of dives for the championships.
“I’m pleased with how the kids performed,” IU Coach Drew Johansen said. “Everyone had a few hiccups and got the chance to see that it’s not about how well you dive, but it’s about how well you can dive when you dive poorly.”
On the 1-meter springboard, junior Joshua Arndt took the lead with his final two dives to win with a career-best 371.70, giving him the 11th all-time best score for IU.
Senior Lacey Houser pulled off one of the hardest dives in the world and placed second on springboard with junior Michal Bower following closely behind in third.
For platform, Arndt came in second with Coldren in third. Bower and Houser placed second and third as well, with two NCAA zones qualifying scores.
“We face Louisville next weekend for our final dual-meet of the season,” Looze said. “This will be a tough challenge for us, and our team knows what they are going up against. We still have a lot of season left and a lot left in the tank.”
