Though they finished last at the Mid-American Conference men's swimming and diving championships, the Ball State University coaches were happy with the Cardinals' performance.
The Cardinals finished last among the four MAC teams at the conference championship and ninth out of 10 teams overall at the meet, which also included the Sun Belt Conference.
However, the individual times and scores made it a good meet, co-coaches Bob Thomas and Laura Seibold-Caudill said.
"They did a awesome job, just down right awesome job," Thomas said. "They improved in probably every event."
Thomas said the Cardinals had 53 season-best times in 56 attempts on the weekend, including 35 Ball State career bests. The goal is for each individual to do their best at the end of the season, he said, and they did that in almost every instance.
The top individual finish overall for Ball State was senior Caleb Bye, who finished eighth overall and fifth in the conference in the one-meter diving Thursday. Bye also led the Cardinals in the three-meter diving, in which he placed 13th overall and sixth in the MAC.
Senior David Linn placed 16th in the three-meter diving.
The top swimming performance on the weekend for Ball State was by senior Ryan Franklin in the 100-yard breaststroke, in which he finished 10th overall and third in the MAC. Franklin was the one Cardinal swimmer to make the finals in any event, which is a top 16 overall finish. He also finished 18th in the 200-yard breaststroke and 35th in the 200-yard individual medley, both of which were Ball State bests in the events.
"I think they did well," Seibold-Caudill said, "But obviously it's frustrating getting fourth."
The Cardinals finished last among the MAC teams with 111 points. Eastern Michigan University took the championship with 589 points. Miami University and the University at Buffalo took second and third with 315.5 and 200 points.
"We did the best we could with what we had," Thomas said. "We couldn't have done any better against the other MAC teams at this time."
The MAC schools also competed with the Sun Belt for the first time in championship history. Missouri State University won the Sun Belt and the overall competition with 688 points. The University of Denver was second in its conference and overall with 654 points. Western Kentucky University and Southern Illinois University finished behind Eastern Michigan and ahead of Miami and Buffalo with 539.5 and 347 points. Florida Atlantic University finished behind Buffalo and ahead of Ball State with 121 points. The University of Evansville finished last among all teams with 108 points.
The Cardinals were in last overall after the first day of competition but surpassed Evansville on the second day.
The Ball State coaches said the Cardinals could have also beaten Florida Atlantic, but the Cardinals were disqualified in the 400-yard medley relay. The disqualification cost them points, which would have been enough to pass Florida Atlantic, they said.
Seibold-Caudill said the team was disqualified because the judge said sophomore Jacob Morris did not touch the wall with two hands. However, she said she did not see the illegal touch.
For the meet overall, Thomas and Seibold-Caudill said they are unsure if they liked competing with the Sun Belt teams.
Seibold-Caudill said it seemed like the Sun Belt coaches did not want the MAC teams at the meet.
"They felt like we were imposing on their meet and taking away from their swimmers," she said.
The added competition was good for the top MAC schools as it pushed them, Thomas said. However, it did not benefit Ball State as much, he said.
"The swimmers already in our conference provide us with all the competition we need," he said.
The championship meet capped off the season for the Cardinals who were 0-3 in the MAC and 4-4 overall. It was the second year in a row that Ball State went winless in the conference and finished last at the conference championships, the first time that has happened in Ball State swimming and diving history.
Thomas and Seibold-Caudill said the team, which is the one non-scholarship team in the MAC, is building and continuing to improve.
"I thought we did a very good job," Thomas said. "We still have a very young squad."
The one athlete still competing for Ball State is women's sophomore diver Lisa Maertin, who qualified for the March 14 NCAA Diving Zone, which is a qualifier for the NCAA championships.
Top FinisherSenior Caleb Bye finished eighth overall and fifth in the MAC in one-meter diving. Bye also placed 13th overall and sixth in the MAC in three-meter diving.
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