🏊‍♀️ Lai Sets School Record, Kansas in Seventh After Three Days of Conference Championships

MORGANTOWN, W. Va. – Day three concluded for the Jayhawks in the 2024 Big 12 Swimming and Diving Championships in Morgantown, West Virginia, on Thursday at Mylan Park Aquatic Center.

Freshman diver Shiyun Lai made Kansas school history with a second-place finish in the one-meter dive, scoring 340.45, a first for the program. In the prelims, Lai advanced to the championship final with a fourth-place finish and a score of 323.10.

Lydia Lafferty led the way for the Jayhawks by qualifying for the Championship Final in the 100-yard butterfly. She finished seventh in the race with a time of 54.34. Lafferty’s time of 53.83 in the prelims was a lifetime best and the fifth-fastest time in program history.

Kansas accumulated lifetime bests, including one from Lafferty, Aidan Howze, Eleni Kotzamanis and two from Amelie Lessing.

"Day three for us was very solid. We built a lot of momentum in the morning and continued that into finals. The highlight tonight was Shiyun finishing second and setting a new KU record for the one-meter, competing against a three-time defending champion from Texas. We are confident the girls will bounce back tomorrow and continue to build on the momentum we started with today."

Assistant Coach Ryan Evans

Lize Van Leeuwen earned a score of 288.6 in the one-meter prelims, pushing her through to the consolation round. Van Leeuwen finished first in the consolation, totaling a score of 300.10 points.

Moving into the evening session, Lafferty, Lezli Sisung, Lessing, Hailey Farrell, Kotzamanis, Howze and Claudia Dougan all advance to the finals.

After three full days of competition, Kansas sits in seventh place with 323 points.

Tomorrow’s session will begin at 9:00 a.m. CT with the women’s 200-yard butterfly, followed by an evening session of finals starting at 5:00 p.m.