Atlantic Coast Conference Championships: Day Four

CHRISTIANSBURG, Virginia, February 25. VIRGINIA captured its fifth-straight Atlantic Coast Conference Men's Swimming & Diving Championship, holding onto a slim lead throughout the day and clinching the victory in the final race of the meet Saturday night at the Christiansburg Aquatic Center. The championship is the 13th in the last 14 years for the Cavaliers and 15th overall, all of which have come under coach Mark Bernardino, tying him for most in ACC men's swimming history with NC State's Don Easterling.

"We had enough depth and enough good fortune that we were able to capture this one, somehow, some way," Bernardino said. "Virginia Tech and the entire conference this year was tremendous. It's great to win for our seniors and it was great experience for our young athletes."

Florida State senior Mateo De Angulo was named the ACC Meet Most Valuable Swimmer for his performance during the week, finishing with three medals, gold in the 500 freestyle and 1650 freestyle and silver in the 400 individual medley. He is the first Seminole to be named Most Valuable Swimmer since 2007, when Kyle Young won the award.

"I knew I had a good shot coming in but I knew it was going to be hard," said De Angulo. "To be able to represent the school at this high level and bring back the MVP is a great honor to me."

Virginia Tech junior Logan Shinholser was named the ACC Men's Most Valuable Diver honor last week after winning the gold in the one- and three-meter springboard championships and the silver on the platform.

The Cavaliers won with final score of 626.5, beating Virginia Tech's 594.5, North Carolina's 564, and Florida State's 542. The 32-point margin of victory was the smallest in an ACC Men's Championship since 2006, when Virginia beat Florida State by 8.5 points.

De Angulo won his second gold of the week with a 14:53.68 mark in the 1650-yard freestyle, the first race of the night. Virginia's Bradley Phillips touched the wall in 15:06.95, and North Carolina's Brett Nagle won the bronze with a time of 15:10.47.

In the 200-yard backstroke, Clemson senior Chris Dart successfully defended his 200-yard backstroke title from last year, finishing in 1:42.98 to claim his third medal of the week. Virginia junior Brady Fox came in second in 1:43.10 to earn 17 points for the Cavaliers, and Florida State freshman Josh Friedel came in third in 1:44.59.

Clemson junior Eric Bruck made it back-to-back gold medals for the Tigers in the 100-yard freestyle, capturing his second individual gold with a time of 43.11. He narrowly defeated Virginia's Peter Geissinger, who posted a 43.19, and Steve Cebertowicz's time of 43.21. The Cavaliers increased their meet lead by 40 points over second place, and led by 44.5 with three races remaining.

Georgia Tech sophomore Anton Lagerqvist captured the first 200-yard breaststroke title in Georgia Tech history, finishing in 1:57.01. Duke's Piotr Safronczyk fell just short, touching the wall in 1:57.03. Florida State freshman Juan Sequera claimed the bronze with a finish of 1:57.85.

Virginia Tech placed four swimmers in the championship final in the 200-yard butterfly, placing third, fourth, seventh, and eighth to decrease the Cavalier lead to 22 points, 594.5-572.5. North Carolina junior Tom Luchsinger took home gold, his second of the week, with a time of 1:44.53. Tar Heel teammate Dominick Glavich won silver with a mark of 1:44.65.

Virginia's 400-yard freestyle relay squad of Peter Geissinger, Tom Barrett, David Karasek, and Parker Camp clinched the championship for the Cavaliers with a bronze-medal finish in the final event. Florida State's relay team won gold in 2:52.65, and North Carolina grabbed silver with a time of 2:53.07.

More information on the 2012 ACC Swimming & Diving Championships can be found at the official website: http://www.theacc.com/championships/12-swimming-diving-championship.html.

The above article is a press release submitted to Swimming World Magazine. It has been posted in its entirety without editing. Swimming World offers all outlets the chance to reach our audience by contacting us at Newsmaster@swimmingworldmagazine.com. However, Swimming World reserves the right to choose what material is posted.

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