The Gustavus men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams are both in first place after the first day of the MIAC Championships which are being held at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center. The women’s team claimed two event titles, while the men posted one. The meet will continue on Friday before wrapping up on Saturday.
The men’s team completed day one with 230 points, 22 points ahead of defending champion St. Olaf (208) and well ahead of third place Carleton (154).
Matt Stewart defended his conference title in the 500 freestyle winning with a NCAA Provisional A Qualifying mark of 4:29.16. Stewart’s time also automatically qualified him for the NCAA Championships. Gustavus dominated the event as Ben Hanson finished second with a time of 4:33.02 (NCAA B Provisional mark), Skylar Davis placed third in a time of 4:36.75 (NCAA B Provisional mark), Whitaker Davis placed fourth with a time of 4:38.92 (NCAA B Provisional mark), and John Rice finished sixth in a time of 4:45.62.
Gustavus received third place performances from Dave Pearson in the 200 IM with a time of 1:56.69 and Tyler Wakefield in the 50 freestyle in a time of 21.18.
The Gusties finished the day with a second place finish in the 400 medley relay. The team of Paul Kirihara, Dan Mikkelson, Connor Ziegler, and Matt Stewart recorded a NCAA Provisional B mark of 3:28.24.
The Gustavus women jumped out to an early lead after day one with 196 points as the Gusties are 29 points ahead of St. Olaf (167) and 60 points better than Carleton (136).
Gustavus started strong as the 200 free relay team of Janae Piehl, Christi O’Connor, Emma Espel, and Jonna Berry took first place with a time of 1:37.77. Carrie Gundersen set a new school record in the 500 freestyle as she defended her title with a NCAA Provisional B Qualifying mark of 5:07.98.
The Gusties had a strong showing in the 200 IM as O’Connor, Sara Pfau, and Marnie Luke finished third (2:12.86), fifth (2:13.77), and sixth (2:16.35), respectively.
Photo Gallery (Courtesy Ryan Coleman, d3sports.com)