INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – The McKendree University women's swimming and diving team continued its 2021-22 season here Friday afternoon by recording one first place finish, three runner-up finishes and nine third place finishes in falling to top-ranked University of Indianapolis, 224-69 at the Ruth Lily Fitness Center.
 
With the setback, the 24th-ranked Bearcats, who left several of their top swimmers at home due to sickness and illness, dropped their dual meet record to 2-7 on the season and 2-3 in the Great Lakes Valley Conference, while UIndy improved to 2-1 in duals and 1-0 in the league.
 
McKendree's lone event win came in one-meter diving as senior Lilia de Oliveira Pelaez (Ile Perrot, Quebec/New Mexico) tallied 268.04 points to post her first win of the season in 1-meter diving. The 268.04 was an automatic NCAA qualifying mark.
 
In addition to Pelaez's win in 1-meter diving, she also placed second in 3-meter diving as she tallied a score of 241.12.
 
Along with Pelaez's win and second place finish in both diving events, freshman Karley Sonnenberg (Plainfield, Ill./Plainfield North) placed second in the 50 freestyle with an NCAA 'B' cut time of 23.88, while McKendree's 200 freestyle relay team also had a second place finish with a time of 1:37.94. The members of the second place relay team were Sonnenberg, freshman Sarah Gromley (Las Cruces, N.M./Las Cruces), senior Haley Rey (Columbia, Ill./Columbia) and junior Emily Drabick (Barto, Pa./Florida Southern).
 
McKendree's third place finishers included Gromley, who was third in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:58.73, while Rey was third in the 200 butterfly with a time of 2:14.62 and Sonnenberg was third in the 100 freestyle with a time of 52.68.
 
Freshman Caitlyn Sligh (Tomball, Texas/Tomball Memorial) recorded two third place finishes – 100 backstroke (1:01.38) and 200 backstroke (2:14.92).
 
Senior Hallie Dixon (Jeffersonville, Ind./Jeffersonville) also placed third in the 500 freestyle with a time of 5:23.17, while graduate student Molly Smalley (Windhoek, Namibia/Plymouth College) was third in the 200 IM with a time of 2:13.90
 
Sophomore Regan Gubera (Jamestown, Ind./Western Boone) also recorded third place finishes in both 1-meter and 3-meter diving. In 1-meter diving, Gubera tallied an NCAA automatic qualifying mark of 259.19 and scored 219.59 in 3-meter diving.
 
The Bearcats will return to the pool on Nov. 18-20 as they compete in the Purdue Invitational in West Lafayette, Ind.
 
Here are the Bearcats' individual results from Friday's UIndy dual meet.

200 Medley Relay
4. McKendree 'A' – 1:50.60 – Sligh, Grace Credit, Rey, Sonnenberg

1,000 Freestyle
None

200 Freestyle
3. Gromley, 1:58.73
4. Dixon, 2:00.66
6. Smalley, 2:02.35

100 Backstroke
3. Sligh, 1:01.38

100 Breaststoke
4. Drabick, 1:09.07
6. Presley Heitzmann, 1:09.76
7. Credit, 1:10.26

200 Butterfly
3. Rey, 2:14.62

50 Freestyle
2. Sonnenberg, 23.88 – 'B' Time

1-Meter Diving
1. de Oliveira Peleaz, 268.04 – NCAA qualifying mark
3. Gubera, 259.19 – NCAA qualifying mark
7. Andrea Menard-Cordoba, 178.12
 
100 Freestyle
3. Sonnenberg, 52.68
5. Gromley, 54.47
9. Hope Euler, 57.94

200 Backstroke
3. Sligh, 2:14.92

200 Breaststroke
5. Heitzmann, 2:30.36
6. Drabick, 2:31.64

500 Freestyle
3. Dixon, 5:23.17
4. Smalley, 5:23.61

100 Butterfly
3. Rey, 1:01.19

3-Meter Diving
2. de Oliveira Peleaz, 241.12
3. Gubera, 219.59
6. Menard-Cordoba, 156.59

200 IM
3. Smalley, 2:13.90
5. Dixon, 2:18.51
6. Heitzmann, 2:20.10

200 Freestyle Relay
2. McKendree 'A' – 1:37.94 – Sonnenberg, Gromley, Rey, Drabick
4. McKendree 'B' – 1:44.89 – Euler, Sligh, Cam Anderson, Dixon