The Gustavus women’s swimming team turned in another strong performance and remained in first place with a 70-point lead over St. Olaf after the second day of the MIAC Championships. The Gustie men are in first place just 40 points ahead of St. Olaf. The championships, which are taking place at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center, will conclude with competition on Saturday.
The Gustavus women began the day with a second place performance in the 200 medley relay as the team of Sara Pfau, Maggie Hansvick, Emma Espel, and Janae Piehl turned in a time of 1:50.60. Strong finishes continued as four swimmers finished in the top seven of the 100 butterfly, including a second place finish by Erica Hickey with a time of 1:00.47. First-year standout Anika Erickson turned in a NCAA B Provisional time of 1:07.14 for a second place finish in the 100 breaststroke.
The Gustavus men started the day in a similar fashion as the women’s team with a second place finish in the 200 medley relay. Paul Kirihara, Dan Mikkelson, Connor Ziegler, and Tyler Wakefield touched the wall in 1:34.63.
The Gusties picked up 67 points in the 400 IM as Skylar Davis took second place in a time of 4:07.90. Davis’ time set a new school record and was also a NCAA B Provisional mark. Whitaker Davis, Greg Pokorski, Kevin Horn, and John Rice took fifth through eighth place in the race, respectively. Another group effort helped Gustavus tally 79 points in the 200 freestyle with five swimmers in the top six. Matt Stewart won the event with a NCAA A Provisional mark of 1:39.99, while Ben Hanson took second in a time of 1:40.83 (NCAA B Provisional). Dave Pearson, Billy Cuevas, and Tyler Wakefield finished fourth, fifth, and sixth, respectively.
Gustavus finished the day on a high note as the 800 freestyle relay team of Stewart, Pearson, S. Davis, and Hanson set a new meet record with a NCAA B Provisional time of 6:48.49 for a first place finish.
Photo Gallery (Courtesy Ryan Coleman, d3sports.com)