The Gustavus men’s swimming and diving team fell one spot to third place after scoring 237 points in day two of competition at the MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships being held at the Aquatics Center on the campus of the University of Minnesota. The Gusties currently have a two-day total of 404 points. St. Olaf leads after day two with 487.5 points, while St. Thomas sits in second with 423 points.
The Gustavus relay teams scored a win and a fourth place finish on the night. Paul Kirihara, Billy Schultze, Matt Van Fossen, Zach Nachtsheim teamed up to win the 200-medley relay to start the night, touching the wall in an NCAA automatic qualifying time of 1:32.32. Schultze, John Rice, Ben Stewart, and Whitaker Davis placed fourth in the 800-free relay with a time of 6:56.72.
Top finishers on the day included Whitaker Davis and Billy Schultze. Davis finished runner-up in the 200 free with an NCAA B cut time of 1:40.76. Schultze also placed second in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 57.40, fast enough to make the NCAA B cut as well.
Paul Kirihara tallied Gustavus’ only other finish in the top-three by placing third in the 100 backstroke with a time of 51.36 (NCAA B cut).
Elliot Hoekstra was the top Gustie breastroke swimmer, finishing fourth in the 100 and touching the wall in 1:00.50.
In the 100 butterfly, Matt Van Fossen and Sam Olson-Anstett both scored top-eight finishes. Van Fossen came in sixth with a time of 52.38, and Olson-Anstett took eighth with a time of 53.12. Criag Nordquist added Gustavus’ other top-eight mark of the night by placing eighth in the 400 IM with a time of 4:21.47.
The Gustavus men’s swimming and diving team will hit the water again tomorrow for the final day of competition at the MIAC Championships. Saturday’s preliminary session begins at 10:30 a.m. and the final session of the Championships will begin at 6:30 p.m. with doors open at 5:30 p.m. at the Aquatic Center.