Carbondale Reporter

The Men's Missouri Valley Conference Championships concluded in Oxford, Ohio, with Southern Illinois University (SIU) finishing as the runner-up. The team scored 691.5 points and achieved several records and awards.

Head coach Geoff Hanson expressed pride in his team's performance, stating, "This week was an extremely successful culmination of more than six months of hard work put in by this men's team." He highlighted the breaking of seven program records and seven event wins. Hanson also noted the achievements of individual team members: "Lastly having the Elite 18 winner, Alex Cimera, the freshman diver of the year, Lucas Lauzon, and the swimmer of the year, Alex Santiago, made for a great end to the meet."

In specific events, Alex Santiago won gold in the 100-yard freestyle and was part of the victorious 400-yard free relay team. Santiago was named Swimmer of the Year after setting new records during his performances. Lucas Lauzon received recognition as Freshman Diver of the Year for his consistent performance throughout the season. Additionally, Alex Cimera earned the Elite 18 Award for combining academic excellence with athletic success.

The competition began with preliminaries where SIU's Willem Huggins excelled in the 200-yard backstroke with a record-breaking time. In finals events later that day, Joshua Aceves placed sixth in the 1650-yard freestyle while Santiago secured another victory in his specialty event.

Southern Illinois' final medal came from their relay team comprising Terry, Csuvarszki, Santiago, and Benedek Andor who set a new record in their win.

Looking ahead, SIU may participate in the Mizzou Qualifier scheduled for March 1-2. However, it remains undecided which athletes will attend.

Fans can stay updated on SIU swim and dive teams through various social media platforms including X at @SIU_SwimDive and Instagram at @siu_swimdive.