Kingsport, TN - After two long days of intense competition, the Southern Virginia University men's and women's swim teams are entering the home stretch of the Independent South Championship meet. Entering the final day, the women's team is holding onto first place with a seventeen point edge over Piedmont, while the men are just five points behind William Peace for second.

While there were many notable performances during the first two days of competition, the second day became a critical juncture for the team. Attempting to win their first conference title since 2022, the women's team was able to extend their lead over the defending champions, Piedmont. A key performance on the day came from Jamie Horne in the 100y butterfly. Not only did she demolish her personal best by breaking the one-minute barrier for the first time in her career, but she also outdueled three Piedmont swimmers to win the event and capture crucial points.

"Breaking through the one-minute has been a long-standing goal of Jamie's and she crushed it! This swim set the tone for the entire day and provided the momentum which helped us win several other events," stated Head Coach Jennifer Jensen.

Not to be outdone, Roman Nowell captured gold on the men's side in the same event. His time of 52.00 seconds outpaced the second-place swimmer by a quarter of a second and helped put a dent into their opponents' lead in the team score. Amelia Beckstead emerged victorious in the 400y IM, finishing in a time of 5:09 while two of her teammates, Arianna Burgan and Lauren Vestel, also finished in the top five.

The women's 100y breaststroke became the Fuhriman show after the two sisters took first and second in the event. Jesi Fuhriman wound up as the winner of the event in dominant fashion, her time of 1:10.46 was three seconds ahead of Mia Fuhriman in second. The final victory of the Knights from day two was the women's 400y medley relay. They finished six seconds ahead of Piedmont to secure the lead heading into the final.

While there is still work to be done, the Knights have set themselves up for success on the final day. Events will resume at 10:00 AM with the 200y backstroke. For the most up-to-date information and details on the team and a meet schedule, visit knightathletics.com.