After competing at the Big 10 championships in Columbus last weekend, Illinois (6-3, 0-3) traveled to Louisville to compete in the Last Chance Meet for an opportunity to qualify for the upcoming NCAA championships.
The dive team will compete in the NCAA Diving Zones in Columbus on March 13-15 and potentially the following weekend, depending on their performance.
The Illini returned to Champaign with commendable results that attest to the hard work during the regular season.
Yousuf sets top-10 program marks
Freshman Sophia Yousuf placed in two top-10 program marks. She swam in the 100 freestyle (49.97) and the 200 IM (2:02:42), ranking her the seventh and ninth fastest times in school history.
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The New Jersey native set four new personal bests while competing in Kentucky. This continued her successful streak since winning the 200 freestyle (1:50.71) at the last home meet against Eastern Illinois (2-10) on Feb. 1.
Yousuf set a new personal best in the 200 freestyle (1:50.26), shaving off 0.45 from her win last month and securing the victory in the finals.
Myriad of personal bests
Of the nine women on the traveling team, four swimmers shared victories. The group amassed a total of nine new personal bests.
Yousuf pelted through the water, setting records in the 50 freestyle (23.71), 100 freestyle (49.97), 200 freestyle (1:50.26) and 200 IM (2:02.42).
Sophomores Marin McAndrew and Maggie Adler achieved new best times over the weekend. Adler set a personal best in 100 freestyle (51:38). McAndrew shaved 1.26 seconds off her 100 butterfly time from the preliminaries to the finals, where she set another new personal best (55.57).
Sophomore Elleka Boeres scored 232.43 on the one-meter boards and 249.08 on the three-meter boards, where she placed first.
Freshman Taylor Judas rounded out the last two with new bests in 200 freestyle (1:52.27) and 200 backstroke (2:04.59).
Other notable meet wins were those of sophomore Gwen Bakker in the 100 breaststroke final (1:04.18) and 100 breaststroke (1:04.91).
Despite the season coming to a close, the Illini haven’t slowed down as they continue to progress individually at each meet.
What’s next?
The swim team is off until the CSCAA National Invitational Championship, where the Illini will head to Florida and compete March 13-15. The divers head east to Ohio for the NCAA Diving Zones.
