IOWA CITY, Iowa – The Missouri State women's swimming and diving team wrapped up its sixth-straight Missouri Valley Conference Championship on Saturday, courtesy of a dominant 889.5-point meet performance at the University of Iowa Recreation and Wellness Center Pool.

"What a great way to finish the season with a wonderful group of ladies," head coach Dave Collins said. "This team worked really hard to navigate the craziness of a continuing pandemic and the girls were resilient and stayed committed when it would have been easy to make excuses. That's what I'm most proud of. The journey over the last few years with this group has taught them they can achieve success no matter what the challenges may be. I am just really happy for them and very proud of each of them." 

Collins was named the 2022 MVC Swimming Coach of the Year after leading the MSU women to their 10^th conference title under his guidance.

The championship win marked the 18th in the past 20 years for Missouri State which leads all NCAA Division I women's swimming and diving programs. The Bears' 397-point margin over second-place Illinois State was the largest in program history.

Libby Howell was honored as the MVC Swimmer of the Year. She finishes her decorated career with an astonishing 15-0 record in individual MVC Championship events and 29 career golds.

"It has been an honor to compete for Missouri State," Howell said. "I am blessed to be able to compete as a Bear for not just four but five years."

Overall, Missouri State had 13 First-Team All-MVC honorees and seven honorable mention selections. The Bears won 14 of the 20 total events, including all five relay events and decimated nine conference records over the course of the four-day meet.

MSU completed the relay sweep in the 400 freestyle relay, as Anna Miller, Libby Howell, Anna Lucas and Jordan Wenner produced an MVC and MSU record-time of 3:19.76.

The Bears wiped the deck in the 1,650 freestyle by taking the 1-5 positions, with Howell winning the final individual event of her career in 16:39.67. Vera Margula followed in second with a time of 16:44.86, while Sam Hietpas grabbed the bronze with a 16:55.80 effort. Rounding out Missouri State was Grace Beahan (17:06.06) and Alex Thorson (17:12.64) in fourth and fifth, sequentially.

Miller rewrote her name into the MVC and MSU record books for the third time with a 48.45 to win her third-straight 100 freestyle finals. Teammates Jordan Wenner (50.18) and Anna Lucas (51.09) followed in the order of third and eighth, respectively.

"I am so blessed to be able to compete for Missouri State the past five years," Miller reflected. "It is a great night to be a Bear." 

Miller, the 2021 Valley Swimmer of the Year, holds finished her career with 27 golds at the MVC Championships. 

"It's hard to imagine this being the last time we will see Libby Howell and Anna Miller race at an MVC championship," Collins added. "They have been the cornerstones of our program for half a decade. They have elevated the expectation of what can be accomplished if you are a swimmer at Missouri State."

In the 200 breaststroke finals, Alessia Puleo joined the party by clocking a 2:13.89 to win the event. The title was the second of her career at the championships, as she also won the event in 2020. Cabrini Johnson was right behind her in second, registering a time of 2:14.96.

Celia Pulido of Southern Illinois continued to serve as one of the very few thorns in the Bears' side as she won the 200 backstroke finals with a time of 1:55.28. Kellie Fischer had a strong showing by dropping nearly a second off her preliminary time to place fifth at 2:00.84. Margula took eighth by registering a 2:05.60 mark.

SIU's Jules Atkinson (2:01.70) won the 200 butterfly finals, while Payton Smith (2:02.94) and Sami Roemer (2:05.19) paced MSU with fourth and eighth-place finishes, respectively.

In the 3-meter diving finals, it was Taylor Hogan of Northern Iowa who was the champion with a 277.50 mark. Adriana Avila recorded a runner-up finish as she scored a 267.85, while Hailey Rissinger placed fourth with a career-best mark of 255.60.  

The MVC Championships conclude the 2021-22 slate for the Missouri State women's swimming and diving team. The MSU men will vie for the Mid-American Conference Championship from March 2-5 in Carbondale, Ill.

For all the latest information on the Missouri State swimming and diving team, visit missouristatebears.com or follow @MoStateSwim on Twitter. 

Team Standings (FINAL)

1.	Missouri State	889.5
2.	Illinois State	492.5
3.	Indiana State	474
4	SIU	473.5
5	UNI	431.5
6	Evansville	328
7	Little Rock	281
8	Valparaiso	68