SIU third at MAC swimming, diving championships
OXFORD, OHIO - The Southern Illinois men's swimming and diving program closed out the Mid-American Conference Championships on Thursday with a third-place finish. It was the best finish for the men's team at the MAC Championships since 2012.
The meet was head coach Rick Walker's final time leading the Salukis at a conference championship. Throughout his 32 years at SIU, 26 as head coach, he has garnered 16 conference titles and 14 Coach of the Year honors.
On the day, SIU tallied an impressive 17 top-10 finishes and four top-five marks. Five individuals were named to the All-MAC second team at the conclusion of the meet.
Chris Phillips had a remarkable day in the pool to lead the Salukis.
Phillips swam the second-fastest mark in SIU history (1:59.22) in the 200-yard breaststroke preliminaries, which earned him the top spot in the finals. He went on to finish third overall with a time of 1:59.80. His finish was one of the three third-place finishes for Southern on day four and was the fifth-fastest time in school history.
Not far behind Phillips were Salukis Fu Kang and Jimmy Dooley. The pair placed sixth and eighth overall with times of 2:01.47 and 2:04.40. Drake Manuello took second in the B final (2:04.82).
Southern also made an impact in the 100-yard freestyle. Reilly Garman, Tamas Hajtman and Zheng Yang Yeapqualified for the A final, while Robert Chelberg qualified for the B final. In the finals, the trio of Garman, Hajtman and Yeap went six-seven-eight with times of 44.97, 45.21 and 45.77. Robert Chelberg claimed victory in the B final with a season-best mark of 45.75.
Chris Cole stepped up on the final day of competition. The senior opened the evening session with a fifth-place finish in the 1650-yard freestyle (15:44.75). He then competed in the next event, the 200-yard backstroke, and took eighth overall (1:51.78). Finishing just ahead in seventh in the 200-back was Ryan Lehane with a time of 1:49.33.
In the 200-back B final, Alex Netzel took second (1:49.70), which was good for 10th overall.
Kevin Kluge competed against Cole in the 1650-free and claimed sixth with a time of 15:49.30.
Another noteworthy finish in the pool came from Kyle Berquist. The sophomore swam a personal-best time of 1:54.95 to win the 200-yard butterfly B final.
In diving, Kai Hoffmann-Dussome earned bronze with a third-place finish in the three-meter dive (305.05). He was one of only three divers to reach the 300-plateau in the event. Teammate Eli Mercado finished in sixth with a score of 256.95.
The quartet of Garman, Hajtman, Chelberg and Yeap swam to third place in the 400-yard freestyle relay, the final event of championship meet, with a season-best time of 2:59.88. With the finish, the Salukis claimed third in all five relay events over the course of the week.