DAY TWO RESULTS

PLEASANT PRAIRIE, Wis. - The 2025 College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin (CCIW) Swimming Championships continued to heat up on Thursday's second day of competitioin, with Carroll's men's and women's teams delivering powerful performances, while combining to break two school records and closing in on conference-rival Illinois Wesleyan in the team standings. When the dust settled after Thursday's competition, Carroll's women sit in fiffth place with 126 team points, 73 shy of IWU's fourth-place total, while the Pio men have scored 101 team points, which is good for fourth place, 10 points ahead of IWU. That marks the first time in recent history that Carroll's men's team is ahead of IWU in the standings, while the Pioneers' women's team is closer to them than ever before at this stage of the meet.

Thursday's session began with the Pioneers delivering some stellar performances in the prelims, sending six women and one man to the finals. The day was marked by record-breaking swims and historic achievements, setting the stage for an exciting evening of competition. The prelim stage was highlighted by a pair of school records, as Senior Josie Peterson earned the top seed in the finals of the 50 freestyle, shattering an 11-year-old school record in the process, as she swam a time of 24.05. On the men's side, Eddie McConnaha established a new school mark in the 100-yard IM, breaking his own record during a time trial with a time of 54.17.

First-year student-athletes Cardigan Tabor and Grace Nelson, along with sophomore Daniel Peña Hartwig, each secured their first-ever spots in a CCIW final, while the 500-yard freestyle saw a historic moment for the Pioneers, with Cardigan, Kelly, and Chopper Ceshker all advancing to the finals — a first for the program. Nelson and Kailee Sitter also qualified for the finals in the 200-yard Individual Medley.

The women's team had a strong showing in Thursday night's finals, with three fast 500 freestyle swims and two scoring 200 individual medleys. All five swimmers contributed valuable points, narrowing the gap with Illinois Wesleyan. Peterson was again one of the highlights of the meet, breaking the 50 freestyle record for the second time on the day with a time of 23.99 to win the event for the third consecutive season, finishing her career as a three-time CCIW Champion and All-Conference performer in that event.

Peterson also swam a leg on Carroll's fifth-place 200 Freestyle Relay team, along with Erin Fixen, Alexandria Ostopowicz, and Morgan Toupal, as that team finished with a lifetime-best time of 1:41.84. In the 400 Medley Relay, Carroll's team of Toupal, Tabor, Fixen, and Kelly Gordon finished fifth with a lifetime-best time of 4:21.62.

The men's team also delivered some strong performances Thursday night, with Senior Dylan Klang securing a scoring individual performance in the 50 freestyle with a season-best time of 23.22. The men's relays were a major highlight of their night, achieving season or lifetime-best times in all four relays and earning their highest placements in the past five years. In the 200 freestyle relay, McConnaha and Klang teamed up with Gavin Buechel and Jacob Rossi to swim a lifetime-best time of 1:27.83, which was good for fourth place in the event. In the 400 Medley Relay, McConnaha, Buechel, Rossi, and Thomas Rynne also finished fourth with a lifetime-best time of 3:40.92.

At the end of the day, Carroll finished with 21 relay split lifetime-best times, while adding five season0-best relay splits. They also finished with seven relay lifetime-bests, three finals season-best times, and one finals lifetime-best time. The Pioneers' depth and talent were on full display, with first-year athletes making significant contributions to both the men's and women's teams. These newcomers played key roles, particularly in the relays, which were largely comprised of first-year competitors.

Carroll will continue to try to move up the team standings in Friday's third day of competition at the Pleasant Prairie RecPlex in Pleasant Prairie, Wis. The day will start with the prelims session at 10:30 a.m., with the finals taking place at 6 p.m. The full event schedule can be found here: https://gopios.com/documents/2025/2/17/CCIW_Swim_Schedule_Women_first.pdf.