MIAMI (Nov. 7, 2014) – The FIU swimming and diving team improved to a perfect 4-0 in dual meets with a 174-126 victory over Illinois State on Friday evening at the Biscayne Bay Aquatic Center. FIU earned 11 event titles in the dual the match victory.

The day was highlighted by freshman Silvia Scalia, who earned an NCAA B qualifying time of 1:58.77 in the 200 backstroke. The Italy native also broke her old record for the Biscayne Bay Aquatic Center pool, which she had previously set on Oct. 4 vs. Florida Atlantic. Improving her previous best time by nearly three seconds, Scalia ranks third in school history for her top 200 backstroke time, trailing senior Johanna Gustafsdottir and Sonia Perez. Scalia's 200 backstroke time currently ranks 29^th in the NCAA and third amongst mid-major schools.

"Being our last dual meet before going into our midseason invite, we showed improvements pretty much across the board," said head coach Randy Horner. "Everybody is getting a little better at cleaning up the details so we can swim better in the races. It was great to see them come out and execute."

"Illinois State is a great team," said Horner. "To do what we did against them and the way we made adjustments was good for our girls. Scalia highlighted it with a 'B' cut in the 200 backstroke. Thats a phenomenal accomplishment for a freshman. Across the board it was a great team effort. We feel like we are in a great place going into the Mizzou Invite."

Also with a big day for the Panthers was Gustafsdottir, who earned three event victories for FIU. Her first victory came in the 200 freestyle, as she and freshman Skye Carey earned a one-two finish in that event for the Panthers. The Iceland native then swam the 200 breaststroke in 2:19.23 to earn the first-place finish. Gustafsdottir capped off her three-win day with a 4:28.16 effort in the 400 IM, which beats her previous season-high that she set at Florida Southern (10/25).

Junior Jessica Chadwick also had a strong meet for the Panthers, picking up two individual victories and an additional win in a relay. The United Kingdom native kicked things off with a time of 1:05.17 in the 100 breaststroke, which is currently the top time for any FIU swimmer in that event this season. Chadwick also swam the 500 freestyle in 5:02.95 to earn the first place finish.

Freshman Karin Tomeckova posted a time of 56.96 seconds in the 100 backstroke as she bested her previous career high to earn the win. In the 100 butterfly, sophomore Jennifer Deist posted a time of 57.44 to earn the win. Junior Valerie Inghels also earned a win in the 200 butterfly, earning a time of 2:06.30.

Fans are encouraged to follow the Panthers on Twitter (@FIUSwimDive) and become a fan on Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSwimmingAndDiving) for all the latest Swimming and Diving news. Follow all of FIU's 18 athletic teams on Twitter (@FIUAthletics), Facebook (Facebook.com/FIUSports), YouTube (FIUPanthers), and Instagram (FIUathletics).

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About FIU Athletics: FIU Athletics is home to more than 400 student-athletes in 18 different sports. Athletic events are played in seven different venues on FIU's campuses (Modesto A. Maidique and Biscayne Bay), including FIU Arena and Ocean Bank Field at FIU Stadium.

About FIU: Florida International University is recognized as a Carnegie engaged university. It is a public research university with colleges and schools that offers more than 180 bachelor's, master's and doctoral programs in fields such as engineering, international relations, architecture, law and medicine. As one of South Florida's anchor institutions, FIU contributes $9.8 billion each year to the local economy. FIU is Worlds Ahead in finding solutions to the most challenging problems of our time. FIU emphasizes research as a major component of its mission. FIU has awarded over 200,000 degrees and enrolls more than 54,000 students in two campuses and three centers including FIU Downtown on Brickell, FIU@I-75, and the Miami Beach Urban Studios. FIU also supports artistic and cultural engagement through its three museums: the Patricia & Phillip Frost Art Museum, the Wolfsonian-FIU, and the Jewish Museum of Florida-FIU. FIU is a member of Conference USA and has over 400 student-athletes participating in 18 sports. For more information about FIU, visit http://www.fiu.edu/.