Results
GRAND RAPIDS, Mich. – The Calvin University men's swimming and diving team remains in first place following a strong third day (of four) at the MIAA Championships hosted by Calvin at Venema Aquatic Center on Friday.
The Knights entered day three with a 33-point edge in the team score column over rival Hope College and extended that edge to 82 points on Friday. Calvin ended the Friday evening session with 758 total points compared to 676 points for Hope, while Kalamazoo College sits in third place with 330 points.
Friday's evening session started with a first-place finish for the Knights in the 200 medley relay in both the championship and consolation finals. The Calvin 'A' relay of
Charles Platt (Downers Grove, Ill./Downers Grove North),
Caleb Gemmen (Mentor, Ohio/Homeschool),
Logan Campbell (Yorkville, Ill./Yorkville) and
Vlad Molin (Rolling Meadows, Ill./Mount Prospect) won the championship heat with a time of 1:28.97. The 'B' relay of
Corey Campbell (Grand Rapids, Mich./Grand Rapids Christian),
Timothy Hays (Arlington, Ill./Prospect),
Andrew Taulbee (Reynoldsburg, Ohio/Reynoldsburg) and
Zachary Logan (Byron Center, Mich./Byron Center) finished in 1:31.4 to win the consolation heat.
Platt came through with the biggest individual performance on Friday, winning both the 200 freestyle and 100 backstroke competitions less than half an hour apart to go along with his work in the opening relay. Platt won the 200 freestyle in 1:37.49 and followed that with an MIAA meet-record time of 47.53 to win the 100 backstroke.
Josh Seidelman (Northville, Mich./Northville) took second in the 200 freestyle in 1:39.02, followed by
Jack Kulaga (Downers Grove, Ill./Downers Grove South) in fifth (1:41.3) and
Andrew Stimpert (Normal, Ill./Normal West) in eighth (1:42.46).
Logan Campbell (50.68) took third in the 100 backstroke, followed by Logan (52.41) in fifth and
Corey Campbell (56.29) in eighth.
David Bajwa (Bethesda, Md./The Heights School) also took home a first-place finish in the 100 butterfly with an NCAA 'B' cut time of 46.96, while
Logan Campbell also finished with a 'B' cut time of 48.34 in third place. Taulbee (50.33) and Molin (51.67) also scored top eight finishes in fifth and eighth place, respectively, in the event.
Diego Herrera Mora (Liberty Hill, Texas/CTP de Belen) led the Knights in the 400 individual medley with a strong finish to take second place in 4:04.09.
Logan Yakubowski (Hazleton, Pa./Hazleton Area) and
Ryan Halberg (Novi, Mich./Northville) finished in fifth (4:11.63) and sixth place (4:14.61), respectively, while
Anthony Crudele (Aurora, Ill./Homeschool) took eighth place (4:29.32).
In a packed heat in the championship final of the 100 breaststroke, Hays finished third in 55.75 followed by Gemmen in fifth at 55.86. Taulbee (56.65) and Crudele (56.92) finished sixth and seventh, respectively.
COACH'S COMMENT: "We started off this morning talking about us making sure we were ready for our races and kind of getting into this conference championship meet being different from the other meets we swim and embracing the game of it," Calvin head swimming and diving coach
Dan Gelderloos said. "We got some momentum rolling this morning and then really came out strong tonight. Winning relays, best times, national qualifying times, and the boys built a nice lead over some really good competition so we're happy with where we are going into tomorrow."
NEXT UP: Calvin swimming and diving will return to action tomorrow (Saturday, February 22) when it competes on the fourth and final day of the MIAA Championships at Venema Aquatic Center. The morning session will start at 10:00 AM, followed by the final evening session at 5:00 PM.
