Men’s Swimming & Diving Team Gears Up for Exciting Weekend Showdowns!

MUNCIE, Ind. – – The Ball State men’s swimming & diving program is set for an eventful weekend as the new year begins, featuring two competitions on the schedule. Firstly, they will head to the Vigo County Aquatic Center for a 1 p.m. matchup against UIndy and Southern Illinois, hosted by Indiana State.

After the dual meet, the Cardinals will swiftly return to the Lewellen Aquatic Center on Saturday for a 2 p.m. Senior Day competition against Evansville. The women of Ball State will also compete during the Aces’ event on Saturday.

The men’s seniors who will be honored during Saturday’s event include Michael Burns, Reece Manning, Michael Mitsynskyy, Erkan Ozgen, and Ethan Pheifer.

The last encounter between Ball State and Southern Illinois took place at the end of the 2024 regular season, resulting in a 181-118 defeat on February 10. The Cardinals secured victories in five events during that meet, spearheaded by diver Porter Brovont, who topped the boards with scores of 307.73 on 1M and 328.50 on 3M. Additionally, SIU finished third at last season’s MAC Championships, two positions ahead of the Cardinals.

The most recent competition against UIndy for the Cardinals occurred at the Butler Invite in February 2024, where Ball State achieved victory with a total score of 1205.5, while UIndy placed second with a tally of 1105.5. The 1650 freestyle event witnessed a commanding performance from Seth Blossom, Tommy Brunner, and Alexander Eddy, who secured a 1-2-3 finish. Blossom’s top performance marked the seventh-fastest time in the history of the program.

The Cardinals last faced Evansville in the regular season on January 17, 2020, where the Aces took home a 156-132 win in their home pool. The two teams competed together at the previous season’s MAC Championships, with BSU placing fifth (414) and UE finishing sixth (262).

Fans can keep track of the events during this weekend’s meets using Meet Mobile.

IN THE MVC RANKINGS
According to the most recent NCAA Division I Top Time Rankings compiled by CollegeSwimming.com, twelve student-athletes from the Cardinals are positioned in the scoring ranks for their respective events leading into this weekend’s competitions.

Men’s Swimmers Currently Ranked in the MVC Top 16
50 Freestyle: 14th – Jacob Siewers (20.56) / 15th – Ethan Pheifer (20.66) / 16th – AJ Friend (20.73)
100 Freestyle: 11th – Jacob Siewers (44.68)
200 Freestyle: 5th – Jacob Siewers (1:38.04) / 15th – Malcolm Slater (1:39.61)
500 Freestyle: 3rd – Malcolm Slater (4:27.61) / 8th – Alexander Eddy (4:33.04) / 9th – Tommy Brunner (4:33.80)
1000 Freestyle: 4th – Malcolm Slater (9:31.78) / 7th – Tommy Brunner (9:35.50) / 16th – Seth Blossom (9:51.69) 
1650 Freestyle: 1st – Malcolm Slater (15:44.50) / 2nd – Tommy Brunner (15:45.80) / 7th – Alexander Eddy (15:58.21) / 12th – Seth Blossom (16:11.47)
100 Backstroke: T-7th – Ethan Pheifer (49.25)
200 Backstroke: N/A
100 Breaststroke: 6th – Aidan Biddle (55.17) / 7th – Michael Burns (55.21) / 14th – Cutter Shipman (56.11)
200 Breaststroke: 8th – Cutter Shipman (2:02.00) / 9th – Aidan Biddle (2:02.09) / 13th – Michael Burns (2:03.60)
100 Butterfly: 15th – AJ Friend (49.46)
200 Butterfly: 11th – Michael Mitsynskyy (1:50.99) / 13th – Luke Pryor (1:52.09)
200 IM: 13th – Michael Burns (1:51.81)
400 IM: 9th – Tommy Brunner (4:01.98)
200 Freestyle Relay: 4th – Ball State (1:21.10)
400 Freestyle Relay: 4th – Ball State (2:59.82)
800 Freestyle Relay: 4th – Ball State (6:44.95)
200 Medley Relay: 5th – Ball State (1:29.67)
400 Medley Relay: 5th – Ball State (3:17.48)

FROM THE DIVING BOARD:
Junior Porter Brovont currently tops the Cardinals on both the 1M (293.03) and 3M (304.85) diving boards.

Ball State Divers Leading Results in 2024-25
Porter Brovont (Jr.) – 293.03 on 1M / 304.85 on 3M
Mitchell Mauck (Fr.) – 239.63 on 1M / 233.93 on 3M
NCAA Zone Diving Qualifying Standards: 300 on 1M / 320 on 3M

MVC AWARD RECIPIENTS:

This season, the Cardinals have earned three weekly honors from the Missouri Valley Conference, with freshman AJ Friend recognized as the MVC Men’s Freshman of the Week on two occasions, and junior Porter Brovont honored as MVC Diver of the Week once.



Swimming Award Recipients:

10/16/2024 – AJ Friend MVC Freshman of the Week

10/23/2024 – AJ Friend MVC Freshman of the Week



Diving Award Recipients:

10/23/2024 – Porter Brovont MVC Diver of the Week





EVENT CHAMPIONS:

As a team, the Cardinals have achieved 15 individual event victories and two relay wins this season.



2024-25 Men’s Individual Event Winners (15)

7 – Malcolm Slater (So.)

Oct. 12 vs. UIC: 200 Freestyle (1:41.42) / 500 Freestyle (4:41.59)

Oct. 18 at Miami: 500 Freestyle (4:36.99) / 1000 Freestyle (9:38.82)

Nov. 23 at Bellarmine: 500 Freestyle (4:41.30) / 1000 Freestyle (9:36.95)

Dec. 7 at Miami Invitational: 1650 Freestyle (15.44.50)



3 – AJ Friend (Fr.)

Oct. 12 vs. UIC: 50 Freestyle (21.43) / 100 Butterfly (51.38)

Oct. 18 at Miami: 50 Freestyle (21.33)



2 – Porter Brovont (Jr.)

Oct. 18 at Miami: 1M Diving (267.75) / 3M Diving (285.95)



2 – Jacob Siewers (Jr.)

Oct. 12 vs. UIC: 100 Freestyle (46.84)

Nov. 23 at Bellarmine: 100 Freestyle (46.59)



1 – Ethan Pheifer (Sr.)

Oct. 12 vs. UIC: 100 Backstroke (52.08)



2024-25 Men’s Relay Winners (2)

2 – 400 Freestyle Relay

Oct. 12 vs. UIC: Friend, Young, Clarkston, Siewers (3:08.05)

Nov. 23 at Bellarmine: Clarkston, Friend, Perkowski, Siewers (3:07.99)