Facing another tough opponent, the Ball State University men's swimming and diving team dropped its match Saturday at Eastern Michigan University, 158-127.
Coach Bob Thomas was pleased with the effort against a quality Eastern Michigan team, who extended its 52-meet Mid-American Conference winning streak.
'Eastern Michigan is definitely one of the frontrunners to take the MAC,' Thomas said. 'They are strong in all areas, and we were able to squeak out some individual wins against their team.'
Ball State swept the top three spots in the 50-yard freestyle final, with Ben Battjes taking first place with a time of 21.58. Austin Laska (21.83) and Casey Schroeder (21.88) took second and third, respectively.
The men also swept the 100-yard butterfly, with Chris Krupa (51.64) leading the way. Tony Debrota (55.10) and Tyler Dixon (55.89) rounded out the top three.
Other event winners for the Cardinals included Quinton Rodriguez, who scored a 199.13 on the 3-meter diving event, and Ben Karwoski, who won the 200-yard butterfly with a 1:56.86. Michael Weber (2:01.06) won the 200-yard IM and the 200-yard freestyle team of Devon Hill, Battjes, Krupa, and Laska placed first as well.
Thomas reiterated the importance of getting familiar with the Ypsilanti, Mich., pool that will host the MAC Championships later this year.
'The mature swimmers get familiar with the environments without being told,' he said. 'They do it every meet, so they are prepared next time they travel somewhere, and I felt we did this for the most part.
Ball State travels to Fishers, Ind., to take on Butler University, Eastern Illinois University, Youngstown State University, and Valparaiso University today.
After a big conference meet, Thomas hopes his swimmers are ready for the quick turnaround.
'We definitely want to win,' he said. 'We beat Eastern Illinois earlier in the year, but they have much improved times since Christmas. Hopefully, the meet today didn't take too much out of us, and we are ready to get the job done tomorrow.'
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