IU slips past Louisville but falls to No. 12 Wisconsin

The No. 15 IU women's swimming and diving team went 3-1 during its action-packed weekend after facing Louisville, Southern Illinois and No. 12 Wisconsin Friday and Illinois Saturday at the Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center. The Hoosiers now boast a 4-2 record after being tested with two dual meets and one quadrangular meet, which completes the first phase of the season.\nAt the quadrangular meet Friday, the Hoosiers took care of business with Southern Illinois (121-105) and squeezed by Louisville (114-112), but suffered a heavy defeat to Wisconsin (149-77). Freshman Allison Kay and junior Annica Lofstedt each snagged two titles during the meet to tie for the most wins on the team.\nRepresenting IU in the 400-yard medley to open the meet, Kay, Lofstedt, freshman Sarah Stockwell and junior Leila Vaziri recorded the seventh-fastest time in IU history, 3:45:73, good for second place in the event.\n"I think we feel good with the depth that we have," Vaziri said. "I also think the freshman class being so big is important for us."\nKay reinforced the utility of the freshman class with an emphatic win in the 200-yard individual medley. They not only posted the seventh-fastest time in the event in team history at 2:02:21, but also ended a seemingly endless streak of Wisconsin titles.\nIU kept the momentum going in the 1-meter diving event as senior Lisa Silvestri obtained the title with a score of 287.30. Sophomore Christina Loukas recorded an explosive 321.93 in exhibition competition, which would have won the event. Later, in the 3-meter dive, Loukas and Silvestri posted what would have been the top two dives in scoreless competition, allowing senior Heather Chapman to pick up the title with a 292.45.\n"I thought I saw a nice improvement on some of the things we've been practicing," IU diving coach Jeff Huber said. "We're moving forward as long as we stay healthy." \nLofstedt countered the continuous Badger attack with a time of 50:83 in the 100-yard freestyle, winning the event. Along with senior Kristin Bradley, junior Clarissa Wentworth and Kay, Lofstedt helped captured the 400-yard freestyle relay title in 3:27:39. \nDuring Saturday's dual meet against Illinois, the Hoosiers added another tally to their win margin after beating the Fighting Illini (168-121). Kay and Lofstedt were among the leaders in titles once again, along with Vaziri, as the three snagged three wins apiece during the meet. IU stole a total of 14 crowns during the afternoon.\nThe Hoosiers posted a title in the 200-yard medley relay and filled the top two spots in the ensuing 1,000-yard freestyle, which was highlighted by a dominating performance by senior Lauren Torpey. \nIU's success continued as Wentworth, racing neck-and-neck with Illinois junior threat Barbie Viney, surged ahead in the final stretch to the steal the 200-yard freestyle title by merely tenths of a second and increase the IU lead to 42-13.\n"I'm always a good finisher," Wentworth said. "I know that if I'm with them turning into the last 50, I can beat them."\nVaziri led a top-three sweep by the Hoosiers in the 100-yard backstroke in 57:11. She would go on to capture the 200-yard backstroke title in the meet as well.\nIn the 400-yard IM, Bradley added to IU's several accomplishments of the weekend by touching right at the NCAA provisional time of 4:23:60 to win the event. \nLoukas claimed victory in the 1-meter dive, scoring 308.77, while junior Lindsay Weigle recorded a 307.12 mark in the 3-meter, good for that event's title.\nWentworth said the squad has been progressing very well during the first few weeks of the season and should continue to be competitive against other Big Ten teams.\n"We're very spirited about our team," she said. "We're all about the team."\nThe Hoosiers will enjoy a substantial break before hosting the IU Invitational beginning Nov. 18.