Indiana University Athletics
IU Edged Out in Closest Big Ten Championship Since 1920s
2/26/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Swimming and Diving
Live Results
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. - The No. 13 Indiana men's swimming and diving squad created the most exciting championship finish in recent memory at the 2005 Big Ten Men's Swimming and Diving Championships on Feb. 26 at the University Aquatic Center in Minneapolis, Minn. Unfortunately, the Hoosiers came up on just the other side of their first team title in 20 years. Heading into the final event, IU led with 685 points to Minnesota's 680.
Unfortunately, despite coming out of nowhere to break the school record in the 400-yard freestyle relay with a 2:55.44 time by the quartet of sophomore Lee Houchin, junior Kevin Swander, sophomore Colin Russell and freshman Todd Patrick to take third place, Indiana was unable to hold onto the lead. Minnesota's contingent of sophomore Mario Delac, senior Terry Silkaitis, junior Adam Mitchell and sophomore Igor Cerensek posted a pool record time of 2:51.24 to hold off a hard-charging Northwestern team of sophomore Mike Alexandrov, freshman Kyle Bubolz, sophomore Matt Grevers and freshman David Kormushoff for the 2005 Big Ten Championship title.
"I told the guys going in that we had to get into third place to have a chance and hope that Northwestern could pull it off," Indiana head coach Ray Looze said. "Unfortunately, Northwestern couldn't pull it off and Minnesota set a Big Ten record to win. I am proud of my team.
"We fought hard and that was very impressive to come this close to Minnesota when they have more talent than us. We just have to wait until next year. Overall, we gained some valuable experience and learned how hard you have to work to win. We are in a nice position for next year when we host the meet."
In the end, Minnesota prevailed in front of an ecstatic crowd with 720 points against IU's haul of 717 points. Michigan came in third with 482 points, while Northwestern finished fourth with 432 points. Meanwhile, Purdue claimed fifth place with a 351 tally, with Ohio State in sixth with 293 and Wisconsin in seventh with 259. Additionally, Penn State took eighth with 250 points, with Michigan State in ninth with 184 points and Iowa in 10th with 104 points.
In the 200-yard backstroke, junior Mike Jones improved his fourth-fastest time in school history with a 10th-place 1:46.47. Michigan junior Chris DeJong claimed the event title with a 1:42.55, while Minnesota freshman David Plummer took second with a 1:43.52.
At the completion of the event, Minnesota jumped out to a 40-point lead with 515 points against Indiana's haul of 475 points. Meanwhile, Northwestern stood in third in 327 points, while Michigan rounded out the top four with 317 points.
In the 100-yard freestyle, sophomore Colin Russell improved his own school record with a 43.51 to place fourth. Meanwhile, Minnesota senior Terry Silkaitis won the crown in 42.91. In the consolation heat, sophomore Lee Houchin finished ninth with a 44.53.
At the end of the swim, Minnesota stretched its lead to 82 points with a 581 total. The Hoosiers maintained second place with 499 points, while Northwestern was third with 358 and Michigan was fourth with 317.
In the 1,650-yard freestyle, junior Sergiy Fesenko snapped James Sweeney's 16-year old record with a third-place 15:00.49, while freshman John Kevin Koehler placed eighth with the fourth-fastest time in school history with a 15:15.57. Freshman Alex Brunfeldt claimed 10th with a 15:23.17. Michigan junior Peter Vanderkaay snared the title with a blazing 14:44.52.
Minnesota bumped its lead to 84 points with 617 points, while IU trailed in second with 533 points. Michigan jumped into third with 383 points, while Northwestern fell to fourth with 372 points.
In the 200-yard breaststroke, junior Kevin Swander seized his second individual Big Ten title and improved his own school record with a first-place 1:56.16 to defeat the field by more than a second. He also punched his ticket with an NCAA automatic qualifier in the event. Purdue junior Giordan Pogioli placed second with a 1:57.74, while Michigan State junior Ian Clutten took third with a 1:58.81.
With the effort, Indiana chipped Minnesota's lead to 82 points, 635-553. Michigan remained in third with 398 points, while Northwestern placed fourth with 386 points.
In the 200-yard butterfly, senior Murph Halasz touched just behind title-winner Northwestern junior Davis Tarwater with a 1:46.21. Tarwater, however, set the pool record with an A-cut time of 1:44.03. Senior Richard Bryant came in fourth with a 1:49.05, while sophomore Scott Tanner finished in sixth with a 1:49.82. In the consolation heat, sophomore Matt Jensen claimed 13th place with a 1:50.29.
At the conclusion of individual swimming at the meet, the Cream and Crimson cut the gap to 54 points with Minnesota leading at 656 points and Indiana tallying 602. Michigan continued to distance themselves for third place with 452 points against Northwestern's 386.
In the platform diving portion of the evening, IU diving took a five-point lead for the Hoosiers. Senior Marc Carlton demolished his previous school record set in prelims with a 643.00 to claim his second title of the week and become the first multiple-diving winner for IU since Mark Lenzi swept the titles in 1989. He also set the University Aquatic Center record in the event.
Meanwhile, sophomore Brian Mariano came in second with a 590.70 and junior Ryan Fagan took fourth with a 526.50. Junior Jesse Rappaport notched fifth-place honors with a 493.10 to round out the championship event for IU.
Overall, IU diving garnered 83 points for a three-day tally of 233, which bettered the previous Big Ten record of 183 set by IU in 2003.
"It was an overall team effort," Indiana head diving coach Dr. Jeff Huber said. "As for Marc, we all still remember him when he was a freshman. He has improved so much with hard work and not saying a word. He just goes to work and never complains. He is a great kid. Mariano also stepped up for us and he's ahead of where Marc was when he was a sophomore.
"It is bittersweet right now. We could be racking our brains to find the three points, but we would go nuts if we did that. We all did a great job and stepped up in the finals. I didn't know we could dive that well."
Next up, the Cream and Crimson host the IU Open at 10 a.m., on March 5 at the Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center in Bloomington, Ind.
