Results
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Calvin University men's swimming and diving team finished a strong opening session of the two-day quad meet against Carthage College, Ohio Northern University and Albion College on Friday night at Venema Aquatic Center.
Calvin finished the night in first place with a team score of 366.5 total points. Carthage (258) is in second place, followed by ONU (214) and Albion (149.5).
The night started with the 200 Freestyle Relay, which was won by the Calvin 'A' relay team of
David Bajwa (Bethesda, Md./The Heights School),
Charles Platt (Downers Grove, Ill./Downers Grove North),
Corey Campbell (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian) and
Vlad Molin (Rolling Meadows, Ill./Rolling Meadows) in a time of 1:21.76. That time ranks first in NCAA III this season.
The 'B' relay for the Knights took second, with the team of
Josh Seidelman (Northville, Mich./Northville),
Addison Van Soelen (Lawrenceville, Ga./Providence Christian Academy),
Timothy Hays (Arlington Heights, Ill./Prospect) and
Zachary Logan (Byron Center, Mich./Byron Center) finishing in a time of 1:24.23. Calvin relays also finished in fifth, sixth, seventh and eighth, respectively, in the race.
The individual events started with the 500 Freestyle, where
Ryan Halberg (Novi, Mich./Northville) took first in 4:45.21.
Diego Herrera Mora (Liberty Hill, Texas/CTP de Belen) took second right behind him in 4:45.39, followed by Seidelman (4:50.38) in fourth place.
Hays took first in the 200 Individual Medley in a time of 1:52.38, which is good for the third-fastest this season in the event.
Grant Ruster (Grand Haven, Mich./Grand Haven) finished second (1:56.05), followed by
Jacob Ziegler (Toledo, Ohio/St. John's Jesuit) in third (1:57.23). Calvin also recorded five more swimmers in sixth, seventh, eighth, ninth and tenth place, respectively, for eight of the top ten spots.
Bajwa claimed first place in the 50 Freestyle with a time of 20.51, followed in the top four by Platt (20.74), Molin (20.86) and Campbell (21.34).
Wil Goodpaster (Hamilton, Mich./Hamilton) took first place off the one-meter diving board with 454.4 points, topping the second-place finisher by 76 points.
The night ended in the 400 Medley Relay, where Calvin took home four of the top five finishes. Platt,
Caleb Gemmen (Mentor, Ohio/Homeschool), Bajwa and Molin took first in 3:17.96 to record a 'B' cut NCAA III time, which also ranks as the second-fastest in NCAA III this season.
The 'B' relay of Hays,
Andrew Taulbee (Reynoldsburg, Ohio/Reynoldsburg),
Logan Campbell (Yorkville, Ill./Yorkville) and Seidelman took second with a time of 3:23.84. The 'C' relay of
Corey Campbell, Ruster,
Jake Schotanus (Versaille, Ky./Woodford County) and Van Soelen took third in 3:32.59.
COACH'S COMMENT: "Last Friday, our team kind of shocked me," Calvin head swimming and diving coach
Dan Gelderloos said. "At a meet that no one was really looking or had starred on the calendar, they set such a high standard and I thought that really built into this week with a meet that everyone loves. And in the first event our women set a school record in a relay with a time that is going to easily qualify for the NCAA meet. And the men also put up a quality time in that relay that is going to qualify for the NCAA meet, as well.
"We were at a high percentage of season-best times tonight, with a couple of personal best times sprinkled in there, as well. And then we closed out with two big relays. We just need to get a couple people healthy there for the women, while the men's time (3:17.9) was super impressive and our 'B' relay out-split that group on the last two legs. So I'm hooked on this team. I'm a big fan of them and what they stand for and they're really fun to watch."
NEXT UP: Calvin swimming and diving will return to action tomorrow (Saturday, November 2) when it competes in two sessions to finish the Calvin Quad Meet at Venema Aquatic Center. The first session starts at 10:00 AM, followed by the evening session starting at 4:30 PM.
