SPRINGFIELD – In hopes of another record-setting season, the Missouri State swimming and diving team begins its 2017-18 campaign Friday, Sept. 29 at the Missouri Show-Me Showdown, hosted by the University of Missouri at Columbia, Mo.
Bear Bites
After reclaiming the Missouri Valley Conference crown last season, the Missouri State women’s swimming and diving team enters its 20th season of competition. The women’s squad returns 18 swimmers, including standouts Sydney Zupan, Loretta Stelnicki, Josie Pearson and Sarah Allegri, while welcoming 10 talented newcomers.
Gearing up for its 52nd season, the men’s team returns to the pool with a vengeance after falling by a mere point at the 2017 Mid-American Conference Championships. Returning the bulk of their roster, the men bring back a strong group of 18 student-athletes and welcome five newcomers to the squad.
Led by All-American Artur Osvath, the MSU men return a talented crop of veteran swimmers. Kacper Cwiek, Samuel Senn, Antonio Thomas and Phillip Willett return to the pool in search of the programs’ 20th conference championship.
The MVC preseason poll is scheduled to be released Thursday, Sept. 28 and the MAC preseason poll will be distributed on Friday, Sept. 29.
Missouri Show-Me Showdown
The Bears will go head-to-head against host Missouri, William Jewell, Lindenwood, Saint Louis, Washington University, Drury, Missouri S&T, Truman State, Maryville and Missouri-St. Louis. With the exception of Missouri S&T, which only has a men’s team, all teams carry men’s and women’s programs.
Last season, the men’s team put together a second-place outing while the MSU women finished fifth. The men combined for 17 top-five performances, highlighted by first-place finishes from Artur Osvath and Antonio Thomas. Then-senior Anna Bump was the top swimmer for the women, claiming third in the 100 breast while Hope Ernhart finished fourth in the 50 free.
Order of Events
200 Medley Relay
200 Free
200 IM
50 Free
100 Fly
100 Free
Women’s 1-Meter & Men’s 3-Meter Diving
500 Free
200 Free Relay
100 Back
100 Breast
400 Free Relay
Women’s 3-Meter & Men’s 1-Meter Diving
Scoring Format
Individual Events: Each team can score only their top three swims in each event
Top 16 places score: 20-17-16-15-14-13-12-11-9-7-6-5-4-3-2-1
Relay Events: Each team can score only their top two relays in each event.
Top 16 places score: 40-34-32-30-28-26-24-22 18-14-12-10-8-6-4-2
1-Meter Diving: Each team will do a diving scramble to try and score the largest point total. Each member on the team will do six dives covering all five groups with true degree of difficulty. The points from each diving group’s highest scorer will count toward the team total score. The best score per diving group will count towards the total.
3-Meter Diving: Each diver will be required to do six dives from all five groups. No matter what first three dives the diver chooses the degree of difficulty will be set at 2.0. The remaining three dives will be true degree of difficulty.
Final Details
Action at the Show-Me Showdown is scheduled to begin at approximately 2 p.m. at the Mizzou Aquatic Center on Friday, Sept. 29. For all the latest information on the Missouri State swimming and diving team, visit missouristatebears.com or follow @MoStateSwim on Twitter.
Press release courtesy of Missouri State University Athletics.
