Springfield Standard

Missouri State University's men's and women's swimming and diving teams will host Ouachita Baptist (men) and Indiana State (women) in a two-day meet starting Friday, October 17, at 4:00 p.m. and continuing Saturday, October 18, at 10:00 a.m. The event will take place at the Hammons Student Center Pool in Springfield, Missouri.

Head Coach Dave Collins commented on the upcoming competition: "We are excited to be back in action at home this weekend against Indiana State and OBU. We have trained well since our meet with Southern Illinois and will hopefully see some improvement in how we attack our races. We are hoping for another really good crowd to come out and support our group."

The Missouri State women's team recently lost to Southern Illinois with a score of 260.5-181.5. Notable performances included freshman Aleca Howard winning her first collegiate race in the 200-yard individual medley, junior Lindsey Hervey winning the 500-yard freestyle, junior Claire Culberson taking the 1000-yard freestyle, and Makenzie Kurre winning the 200-yard freestyle. On the diving board, freshman transfer Delaney Nickles won the three-meter dive, while junior Maggie Arceneaux scored highest in the one-meter competition.

Missouri State's women's swimming and diving program has secured 20 of the last 23 Missouri Valley Conference championships but finished third in 2025.

On the men's side, Missouri State defeated Southern Illinois with a score of 275-171. Senior Storm Opdahl swept all diving events, earning him the Missouri Valley Conference Men's Diver of the Week award on October 8—the first such honor for a Missouri State diver since March 2021. Freshman Zach Mendez won three freestyle events: 200-, 500-, and 1000-yards. Sophomore transfer Ilias El Fallaki won his first race as a Bear in the 1000-yard freestyle. The team also saw success in relay events and other individual races from Carter Crook, Kiefer Roemer, Jack Ailshire, and Lucas Chadwell.

The men's team is aiming to improve upon its third-place finish at last season's MVC Championship. The program has claimed 21 conference championships overall, including five MVC titles.

Missouri State holds an undefeated dual record against both visiting teams: the men's team is 5-0 against Ouachita Baptist, while the women's team is 3-0 against Indiana State.

Coach Dave Collins is entering his fifteenth season leading Missouri State swimming and diving. He seeks his thirteenth women's conference championship and fourth men's league title this year. Collins has been named MVC Swimming Coach of the Year eight times and was previously recognized five times as Mid-American Conference Swimming Coach of the Year.

The meet schedule includes various swimming events such as relays, individual medleys, butterfly, freestyle, breaststroke, backstroke races, as well as diving competitions for both men and women across both days.