TERRE HAUTE, Ind. – Indiana State closes out the 2023-24 regular season this weekend at the Vigo County Aquatic Center as the Sycamores host Illinois State in their final tune-up for the 2024 Missouri Valley Championships. The dual meet is set to start at 7 p.m. on Friday evening.
 
Indiana State will recognize 2023-24 seniors Jordan Gruce, Makayla Sura, Kaimi Matsumoto, Esther Rydbeck Norden, Sierra Bowman, and Bailey Betzer in a pre-meet ceremony on the pool deck.
 
"Senior Day is always special and we're looking forward to honoring this group of seniors," head coach Josh Christensen said. "It's a smaller class, but one that represents a great cross section of our team. They are leaving a strong legacy and will be missed!"
 
ISU is coming off one of their strongest meets of the season as the Sycamores made the trip to the Tim Welsh Classic in South Bend, Ind. taking on Ohio State, Notre Dame, and Akron. ISU set three new program records over the two-day competition with Claire Parsons (1000 Free), Erin Cummins (200 Free), and the ISU 200-yard Freestyle Relay team all establishing new program standards.
 
Parsons posted her third individual record of the 2023-24 season at the Rolfs Aquatic Center as the freshman continues to impress this season. The Terre Haute native boasts the fastest times in the MVC in the 500, 1000, and 1650-yard Freestyle events this year.
 
Fellow freshmen Cummins and Kaleigh Kelley (100 IM) have also set new ISU program records this season, while Chloe Farro (100 Free) also set a new mark in the sprint event. The combination of Chloe Farro, Kelley, Matsumoto, and Alexa Szadorski also set the ISU mark in the 200-yard Freestyle Relay this past weekend with a time of 1:31.89.
 
The Sycamores have topped Illinois State in four consecutive dual meets dating back to the 2017-18 season. ISU topped the Redbirds last season, 194-106, on the road at Horton Pool. The Sycamores claimed 12 of the 16 events in the dual meet to top Illinois State for the second time in the 2022-23 season after previously topping the Redbirds at the Valley Showcase.
 
Illinois State enters the meet with a 4-1 record in dual meet competition. The Redbirds topped Eastern Illinois, Ohio, UIC, and Northern Iowa over the season with the latest result coming on January 19-20 against the Panthers.
 
"This is going to be another very challenging, competitive meet," Christensen said. "Illinois State is a talented team in the water and on the boards. With this being our last home meet, it's an opportunity to hone our racing skills in a real meet environment."
 
The Sycamores boast 48 times or scores inside the Missouri Valley Top-10 Performance List on the season heading into the weekend.
 
Sycamores in the MVC Performance Top 10s

• Chloe Farro – 50 Free (23.14, 2nd), 100 Free (50.02, 3rd)
• Kaleigh Kelley – 50 Free (23.39, T-7th), 100 Breast (1:03.85, T-10th), 200 Breast (2:18.85, 9th), 50 Fly (25.67, T-7th), 100 Fly (54.85, 4th), 100 IM (57.36, 3rd)
• Alexa Szadorski – 100 Free (50.86, 8th)
• Erin Cummins – 200 Free (1:48.96, 2nd), 500 Free (4:56.33, 5th), 1000 Free (10:09.90, 3rd)
• Claire Parsons – 200 Free (1:50.49, 8th), 500 Free (4:51.86, 1st), 1000 Free (10:05.26, 1st), 1650 Free (16:52.20), 200 Back (2:02.18, 8th)
• Peyton Heagy – 200 Free (1:51.07, 9th)
• Haley Halsall – 500 Free (4:56.47, 6th), 1000 Free (10:17.12, 8th), 1650 Free (17:12.14), 200 Fly (2:01.89, 3rd)
• Esther Rydbeck Norden – 1000 Free (10:13.36, 5th)
• Olivia DiRuzza – 200 Back (2:01.61, 6th)
• Ali Pearson – 50 Breast (29.31, 4th), 100 Breast (1:02.68, 4th), 200 Breast (2:16.38, 6th)
• Kaimi Matsumoto – 100 Breast (1:03.85, T-10th), 200 Breast (2:17.87, 7th), 50 Fly (25.62, 6th), 100 Fly (55.31, 7th)
• Dorotea Bukvic – 200 Breast (2:16.35, 5th), 200 IM (2:02.61, 3rd), 400 IM (4:22.67, 4th)
• Raine Boles – 50 Fly (25.53, 5th), 200 Fly (2:05.18, 9th)
• Raz Harel – 200 Fly (2:03.98, 7th)
• Alexandria Cotter – 200 IM (2:02.89, 5th), 400 IM (4:21.25, 3rd)
• 200 Freestyle Relay – (1:31.89, 2nd)
• 400 Freestyle Relay – (3:23.76, 6th)
• 800 Freestyle Relay – (7:26.23, 2nd)
• 200 Medley Relay – (1:41.53, 4th)
• 400 Medley Relay – (3:43.91, 3rd)
• Zoe Smith – 1M Diving (278.93, 3rd), 3M Diving (298.95, 3rd)
• Bailey Betzer – 1M Diving (272.40, 4th), 3M Diving (275.25, 7th)

Follow the Sycamores
For the latest information on Sycamore Swimming and Diving, visit GoSycamores.com. You can also find the team on social media, including Twitter, Facebook, Instagram and YouTube. Fans can also receive updates on Sycamore Athletics by downloading the March On App from the both the App Store and the Google Play Store.