Women's Swimming 1/21/2022 8:50:00 PM Morgan Vogels

Big Blue Swimming Hangs Tough in Friday Night Dual with Illinois Wesleyan

The Big Blue men's and women's swim teams matched up with the Titans of Illinois Wesleyan University on Friday, January 21 at the Decatur Family YMCA in Decatur, Ill.

Millikin started off the meet strong, taking the top spot in the women's 200 yard medley relay. With Liv Marquardt, Laura Atkinson, Brigid Duesterhaus, and Aly Barnes swimming legs, the Big Blue finished in a time of 1:51.50 to beat out the IWU squad by .26 seconds.

Duesterhaus was the victor in two individual races, including the 50 yard freestyle she swam in a time of 24.85. Kelli Sangston and Grace Meacham placed second and third for the Big Blue. Duesterhaus's second win of the day came in the 100 yard freestyle, finishing in a time of 55.17 for the victory. Atkinson and Sarahi Villafana also placed for the Big Blue in fourth and fifth.

Dawsen Loafman claimed an individual victory in the men's 100 yard freestyle with his time of 51.20. Maniago placed second.

Barnes took first place in the women's 500 yard freestyle in her time of 5:32.68. Close behind her was Hope Roderick for a second place finish.

On the men's side, the team of Loafman, Jason Burrow, Carter Noyes, and Diogomaye Bamba placed second in the 200 yard medley relay.

The Big Blue's Shay Buchanan and Villafana were the competitors for MU in the women's 1,000 yard freestyle, taking fourth and fifth. Omar Ayad and Kade Zanger placed second and third in the men's 1,000 yard freestyle.

In the 200 yard freestyle, Millikin's Kendall Rossignol and Roderick were the top finishers in second and third. For the men, Justin Maniago placed second with his time of 1:55.83, and Mark Miller placed fourth.

Loafman was second in a tightly contested men's 50 yard freestyle race, finishing in a time of 23.17. Bamba placed fourth.

Barnes and Katie Yelaska each placed in the women's 200 yard IM, with Barnes finishing second in a time of 2:13.70 and Yelaska in fourth. Noyes and Burrow placed on the men's side in second and third.

In the 100 yard butterfly, Marquardt was second in a close race, and Kaitlyn Mayer placed fifth to score for the Big Blue. On the men's side, Bamba placed third and Joe Smiley took fourth place.

Scoring points for the Big Blue in the women's 100 yard backstroke were Marquardt in third and Sangston in fourth. For the men, it was Miller in third and Zanger in fourth. The men's 500 yard freestyle saw Maniago place second and Smiley in third.

The women's 100 yard breaststroke's top finisher for Millikin was Atkinson in second, followed by Rossignol in third and Yelaska in fourth. On the men's side, Omar Ayad tallied the top time for the Big Blue for a third place finish, and Burrow finished fourth.

Millikin ended the meet with a pair of second place relay finishes. On the women's side for the 200 yard freestyle, the team of Mayer, Grace Meacham, Amanda Fathman, and Sangston were second. For the men, Miller, Ayad, Zanger, and Smiley claimed the second place slot.

Both the men and women fell to strong Titan squads, the women by a score of 91-114 and the men by a 69-119 margin.

In a quick turnaround for the Big Blue, Millikin swimming will travel to Elsah, Ill. on Saturday, January 22 to participate in the Principia College Panther Invite.

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Players Mentioned

Brigid Duesterhaus: Sophomore

Liv Marquardt: Sophomore

Hope Roderick: Sophomore

Laura Atkinson: Freshman

Kaitlyn Mayer: Freshman

Kelli Sangston: Freshman

Katie Yelaska: Freshman

Omar Ayad: Junior

Diogomaye Bamba: Sophomore

Kade Zanger: Junior

Jason Burrow: Freshman

Dawsen Loafman: Freshman

Players Mentioned

Brigid Duesterhaus
: Sophomore

Liv Marquardt
: Sophomore

Hope Roderick
: Sophomore

Laura Atkinson
: Freshman

Kaitlyn Mayer
: Freshman

Kelli Sangston
: Freshman

Katie Yelaska
: Freshman

Omar Ayad
: Junior

Diogomaye Bamba
: Sophomore

Kade Zanger
: Junior

Jason Burrow
: Freshman

Dawsen Loafman
: Freshman