MADISON, Wis. – Maycey Vieta and Maggie Merriman claimed silver and bronze medals in platform diving on the same night at the Big Ten Championships for the second time in their careers, headlining an event that generated 109 team points for Purdue women's swimming and diving on the final day of the league showcase.
Sophie McAfee and Emily (Bretscher) Pfeiffer were also championship finalists on the tower, giving the Boilermakers four of the top eight finishers. McAfee finished fifth and was top 10 in all three diving events this week after sweeping the consolation finals of the springboard events.
Pfeiffer qualified for her fifth consecutive platform championship final and 10th career championship final at Big Tens overall. She accounted for 300 team points at Big Tens during her career, a program record that could stand for a long time.
In the swimming events, Abby Harter (1:57.01 in 200 back) and Lindsay Turner (1:57.93 in 200 fly) both moved into fourth place in program history with career-best times that doubled as NCAA provisional qualifying marks (B Cuts).
Vieta and Merriman also won silver and bronze on the tower at Big Tens in 2020. Merriman medaled on the platform for the third consecutive year after also claiming silver last season. She joined Carrie McCambridge (2004-06) and MacKenzie Tweardy (2013-15) as Purdue's only female divers to accomplish that feat at Big Tens. The Purdue women have claimed a medal on the tower in five consecutive Big Ten Championships dating back to 2018.
With Jenna Sonnenberg also scoring on platform via her 18th-place finish in the prelims, the five divers combined for 109 points in the final individual event of the meet. That big total, easily Purdue's largest in any event this week, catapulted the Boilermakers into seventh place in the final team scores. The top six squads were all nationally ranked in the CSCAA top-25 poll released prior to the beginning of the conference championship meets across the country.
Vieta (349.50), Merriman (324.00) and McAfee (294.75) all posted career-best scores in the final. They now rank third, eighth and 13th in program history. Vieta improved on her prelim score (290.10) by 59 points in the final.
Madeline Greaves broke two minutes again in the 200 fly (1:59.96), joining Turner in the B final of the event. Greaves improved on her 14th-fastest time in team history. With fellow freshman Cecilie Wiuff scoring in the C final, Purdue earned 27 points in the 200 fly, its top total in any individual swimming event this week.
Masy Folcik and Mahala Erlandson scored in the C final of the 200 breaststroke. They were both top 25 in both breaststroke events this week.
Selected Purdue swimmers may choose to race next weekend at an NCAA Last Chance meet. The NCAA Zone C Diving Championships, set for March 7 to 9 in Ann Arbor, will serve as the NCAA Championships qualifier for the divers.
FINAL TEAM SCORES
1.) No. 6 Ohio State 1303
2.) No. 9 Michigan 1185
3.) No. 15 Indiana 1100
4.) No. 14 Wisconsin 1085
5.) No. 16 Northwestern 919.5
6) No. 20 Minnesota 838.5
7.) Purdue 479
8.) Rutgers 449
9.) Nebraska 423
10.) Penn State 396
11.) Illinois 199
12.) Iowa 165
Sophie McAfee and Emily (Bretscher) Pfeiffer were also championship finalists on the tower, giving the Boilermakers four of the top eight finishers. McAfee finished fifth and was top 10 in all three diving events this week after sweeping the consolation finals of the springboard events.
Pfeiffer qualified for her fifth consecutive platform championship final and 10th career championship final at Big Tens overall. She accounted for 300 team points at Big Tens during her career, a program record that could stand for a long time.
In the swimming events, Abby Harter (1:57.01 in 200 back) and Lindsay Turner (1:57.93 in 200 fly) both moved into fourth place in program history with career-best times that doubled as NCAA provisional qualifying marks (B Cuts).
Vieta and Merriman also won silver and bronze on the tower at Big Tens in 2020. Merriman medaled on the platform for the third consecutive year after also claiming silver last season. She joined Carrie McCambridge (2004-06) and MacKenzie Tweardy (2013-15) as Purdue's only female divers to accomplish that feat at Big Tens. The Purdue women have claimed a medal on the tower in five consecutive Big Ten Championships dating back to 2018.
With Jenna Sonnenberg also scoring on platform via her 18th-place finish in the prelims, the five divers combined for 109 points in the final individual event of the meet. That big total, easily Purdue's largest in any event this week, catapulted the Boilermakers into seventh place in the final team scores. The top six squads were all nationally ranked in the CSCAA top-25 poll released prior to the beginning of the conference championship meets across the country.
Vieta (349.50), Merriman (324.00) and McAfee (294.75) all posted career-best scores in the final. They now rank third, eighth and 13th in program history. Vieta improved on her prelim score (290.10) by 59 points in the final.
Madeline Greaves broke two minutes again in the 200 fly (1:59.96), joining Turner in the B final of the event. Greaves improved on her 14th-fastest time in team history. With fellow freshman Cecilie Wiuff scoring in the C final, Purdue earned 27 points in the 200 fly, its top total in any individual swimming event this week.
Masy Folcik and Mahala Erlandson scored in the C final of the 200 breaststroke. They were both top 25 in both breaststroke events this week.
Selected Purdue swimmers may choose to race next weekend at an NCAA Last Chance meet. The NCAA Zone C Diving Championships, set for March 7 to 9 in Ann Arbor, will serve as the NCAA Championships qualifier for the divers.
FINAL TEAM SCORES
1.) No. 6 Ohio State 1303
2.) No. 9 Michigan 1185
3.) No. 15 Indiana 1100
4.) No. 14 Wisconsin 1085
5.) No. 16 Northwestern 919.5
6) No. 20 Minnesota 838.5
7.) Purdue 479
8.) Rutgers 449
9.) Nebraska 423
10.) Penn State 396
11.) Illinois 199
12.) Iowa 165