CLEVELAND, Miss. – The Delta State men's swimming and diving team turned in a nearly perfect performance against Rhodes College, winning all but one event against the Lynx and snagging ten 1-2-3 finishes.
 
OFF THE STARTING BLOCKS:

• Opponent: Rhodes College
• Date | Time: Sept. 29, 2016 | 7 p.m.
• Location: DSU Aquatic Center
• Final: DSU 194 | Rhodes College 43
• Short Story: The Statesmen won all but one race and notched ten event sweeps against Rhodes.

HOW IT HAPPENED:

• Freshman Giulio Brugnoni continues to impress in his debut season.  After winning the 100-yard backstroke against Alabama in his first race as a Statesmen, Brugnoni snagged three more first-place finishes Friday night.  The Italian native led off the victorious 200 medley relay before winning the 50 free (20.99) and 100 back (49.16).
• Mattia Schirru cruised to his first victory of the year, dominating the 100-yard freestyle by over two seconds.  The junior All-American also finished second in the 200 free and led off the victorious 200-yard freestyle relay for the Statesmen.
• In the 200 free, Schirru and junior Gabriel Miranda stayed close through the first half of the race before Miranda edged ahead to secure the win.  Miranda followed with his second individual victory of the meet in the 500 free, finishing in 4:48.44, and was also a member of the Statesmen's winning 200 free relay.
• Fresh off his impressive win in the 100 breaststroke against Alabama, Cody Lavoie clocked a 1:55.96 in the 200 individual medley to win by almost six seconds. The senior led a Statesmen sweep of the event, as juniors Adam Charlton and Ivar de Jong finished second and third respectively.  Lavoie also won the 100 breast and swam the second leg of the winning 200 medley relay.
• In the 1-meter diving competition, the Statesmen had four divers qualify for NCAAs, as sophomore Kyle Weesner, junior Nic Martin, senior Eli Mcbride, and senior Bill Ashwell all met the Division II qualifying standard.  Weesner swept both 1-meter and 3-meter competitions.

UP NEXT: The Statesmen will have nearly a month off until their next competition, when they travel to Rolla, Missouri, to compete against Missouri S&T, Friday, October 20.  The following day, the squad will take on Lindenwood for their conference opener.