MARKO TOMICH | Contributing Reporter
The Butler swim team hosted the fifth annual Butler Invitational and placed fourth of eight squads.
Sunday’s meet was senior night for Butler seniors Kaitie Ring and Hayden Engstrom.
“This was Kaitie and Hayden’s last home meet, (and) we wanted to make it as special and great as we could,” sophomore Milly Sauber said. “I think there was a lot more passion from the team at this meet, like we wanted to swim for the girls who have carried us on their back.”
Illinois State won the invitaional with 955.5 points. Xavier placed second with 584.5 points.
Butler sophomore Amanda Wagner placed third in the 100- yard breastroke. Freshman Mary Cerajewski also finished in the top 10 for the event.
A unique happening occurred in the 100 and 200 butterfly events, as two Butler athletes tied in their respective events.
Sophomore Allie Dvorchak split points with Xavier’s Heidi Turner in the 200 butterfly, with both swimmers clocking in at 2:18.24.
Dvorchak said that while a tie is rare, it is not unheard of.
“Swimming comes down to the hundredths of a second,” Dvorchak said. “While it is quite remarkable to tie with a competitor down to the last hundredth, it is not entirely rare. At any big meet, it is common to see two people tie. It takes competition and racing to a whole new level.”
Sophomore Emma Green tied Illinois State’s Rachel Root in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 1:01.11.
Freshman Audrey Gosnell earned two top-five finishes, earning fifth in the 100 yard Butterfly and fourth in the 50 Freestyle.
Butler will make its next splash Saturday at Western Illinois. The meet will be the last for the Bulldogs before they dive into their first Big East Conference tournament, for which they will travel to Sewell N.J., on Feb. 19.