Valpo Swimming & Diving Opens MVC Championships with Record-Breaking Performance
EVANSVILLE, Ind. – The Valparaiso men’s swimming team set a new program record in the 200-meter freestyle relay on Wednesday evening, highlighting the first day of competition at the 2026 Missouri Valley Conference (MVC) Championships held at the Deaconess Aquatic Center in Evansville, Indiana.1
How It Happened
The Valpo men began the evening session with a record-breaking swim of 1:23.24 in the 200-meter freestyle relay, achieved by Luke Snider, Isaac Dinari, Ben Mettler and Anthony Martin.1 This surpassed the previous program record by 0.15 seconds, with Snider’s leadoff leg of 21.04 seconds improving his sixth-fastest time in program history in the 50-meter freestyle.1
The Valpo women’s team nearly matched this success, finishing just 0.02 seconds off their school record in the same event, with a time of 1:35.55 from Una Dizdarevic, Bri Keese, Faith Bargwell, and Audrey Morgan.1
Five Valpo swimmers qualified for individual event finals on Wednesday, with four coming from the men’s team in the 200-meter individual medley. Jackson Oostman finished 21st with a time of 1:51.86, while Gabe Vasquez placed 23rd at 1:52.75, after posting a prelim time of 1:52.53, which moved him to second in program history in the event.1
Isaac Dinari finished 23rd in the 50-meter freestyle with a time of 21.14, and Gabriel Corkran finished 24th in the 500-meter freestyle, swimming a finals time of 4:36.25 after qualifying with a prelim time of 4:34.45.1
On the women’s side, Audrey Morgan claimed 21st place in the 500-meter freestyle, setting a personal record of 5:04.65 after qualifying with a prelim time of 5:07.53, moving her to third place in program history in the event.1
Majo Suarez de la Fuente improved her seventh-fastest time in program history in the 200-meter individual medley with a prelim swim of 2:12.47, while Bri Keese swam a time-trial of 27.02 in the 50-meter butterfly to move into ninth all-time at Valpo in that event. Keese likewise posted the fastest prelim time for the Beacons in the 50-meter freestyle, covering it in 24.16.1
The Beacons concluded the night with strong relay swims. Sophie Schoch, Natalie Eaton, Kailyn Benoit, and Morgan recorded a time of 3:53.98 in the 400-meter medley relay, improving their third-best time in program history, with Schoch’s 100-meter backstroke leadoff leg of 58.16 moving her to third all-time at Valpo in that event.1
The men’s 400-meter medley relay team of Caleb Smesko, Carson Parker, Asa Sadowsky, and Anthony Martin swam the second-fastest 400-meter medley relay in program history with a time of 3:21.55.1
After the first day of competition, the Valpo men sit in eighth place with 99 points, while the women are in ninth place with 84 points.1
Next Up
Valpo continues the 2026 MVC Championships on Thursday with the second of four days of action. Prelims start at 10:30 a.m. And finals at 5:30 p.m.1 The championships, hosted by Evansville, Indiana, and the Deaconess Aquatic Center, mark the first time the MVC men’s and women’s swimming and diving championships are held together in the same venue during the same week in over two decades.2
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