First year standout Skylar Davis (Palatine, Ill.) finished first in the 1,650 freestyle and posted three NCAA B Provisional Qualifying marks to help the Gustavus men’s swimming team finish second at the eight-team Carthage Invitational in Kenosha, Wisconsin. Gustavus scored 778 points, while St. Cloud State finished first with 856 points.
The Gusties turned in a strong team showing against some excellent competition at the Carthage Invitational and it was first year distance specialist Skylar Davis that sparked the squad. Davis finished first in the 1,650 freestyle with a NCAA B Provisional time of 16:05.96. He also finished second in the 500 free with a NCAA B Provisional time of 4:38.72 and third in the 400 individual medley with a NCAA B Provisional time of 4:09.0. Davis’ time in the 400 IM also broke the school record time of 4:13.39 set by Greg Pokorski last year.
Senior sprinter Brian Amundson (Coon Rapids, Minn./Blaine) also had a big weekend as he finished first in the 50 freestyle with a time of 21.36 and fourth in the 100 free with a time of 47.65. Amundson also swam the anchor leg on the 400 free relay team that finished first with a time of 3:10.17. Joining Amundson on the winning relay were Matt Stewart (So. Burnsville, Minn./Apple Valley), Dave Pearson (So., Woodbury, Minn./Stillwater), and Ben Hanson (Jr., Minnetonka, Minn.).
The Gusties performed well in other relays including the 800 free relay team of Josh Waylander (Sr., Montevideo, Minn.), Ben Hanson, Connor Ziegler (Jr., Sauk Rapids, Minn.), and Brian Amundson that finished second (7:02.22) and the 200 medley relay team of Matt Stewart, Billy Cuevas (So., Woodbury, Minn.), Dave Pearson, and Ben Hanson that placed second (1:37.05).
Individually, Ben Hanson finished third in the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:44.06 and fourth in the 500 free with a time of 4:39.10. Hanson’s time in the 500 free met the NCAA B Provisional standard.
Gustavus will now break for finals and the Christmas Holiday. The team’s next meet will be January 13 at the St. John’s/St. Ben’s Invitational.