Indiana at Kentucky

LEXINGTON, Kentucky, November 30. WITH victories in 12 of 14 swimming events, the Indiana University men's swimming and diving squad picked up a 186-114 dual meet victory at Kentucky.

"With losses in the two relays we found ourselves in a hole right off the bat," said head coach Ray Looze. "But we were able to win individual races, plus our depth kicked in. We knew going in we would have an advantage with our depth and we won close races that we had not been able to early in the season.

"Kentucky was ready for us. They had a great atmosphere and I was really proud with how the team responded to that."

Matt Lenton improved upon his 2007 time in the 50-yard freestyle by winning the event with a mark of 20.41. Mark Wetzel (21.64) and Kevin Happ (22.70) also scored for IU. Todd Patrick continued his dominance in the 100-yard free with a time of 45.06, with Titus Knight fourth (46.19).

John Kevin Koehler was a two-time winner, touching the wall first in the 200-yard freestyle (1:38.65-season best) and 500-yard freestyle (4:30.27). Knight was third in the 200 free (1:39.75-season best), and the Hoosiers placed in the second and third spots in the 500 free with Alex Brunfeldt second (4:33.74) and Knight third (4:34.55).

It was a 1-2-3 finish for IU in the 1,000-yard freestyle with Brunfeldt knocking more than 10 seconds off his previous season best with a time of 9:24.19. Steven Murry was second (9:33.31) and Steffan Troxel third (9:35.33).

The field was no match for Ben Hesen in the 100-yard backstroke as he cruised to victory in a time of 48.61. Doug Spraul was third (51.31) and A.J. Miller fourth (52.30) to add valuable points to IU's total. Hesen was again victorious in the 200 back (1:48.04).

Senior Pat Penoyar improved his season mark in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 55.94 to place first. Ronald Hehn took second in 55.95. Penoyar led a 1-2 Indiana showing in the 200 breast, edging out Alec Haley (2:03.77) with a time of 2:02.80.

Hesen's third win of the day came in the 100-yard butterfly (48.35), while Patrick took top honors in the 200-yard race (1:48.46). Patrick's time of 1:51.10 in the 200-yard individual medley was also good enough for the win.

Taylor Roberts led the Hoosiers on the 1-meter springboard with a second-place score of 343.43. Freshman Landon Marzullo was third (289.43) and Will Bohonyi fourth (258.30), picking up big points for Indiana. In the 3-meter competition it was Marzullo second (341.26), followed by Roberts (third-341.25) and Bohonyi (fifth-275.70).

The only races the Hoosiers did not win were the two relays as the team of Knight, Lenton, Koehler and Patrick placed second in the 400-yard freestyle relay, despite a season-best time of 3:02.25. Hesen, Hehn, Miller and Lenton were just edged out the 200-yard medley with a time of 1:30.22.

The Indiana University women's swimming and diving team came up just short in its dual meet at Kentucky, falling 164-134 to the Wildcats Friday evening at the Lancaster Aquatic Center.

Presley Bard led a 1-2 Indiana finish in the 100-yard backstroke, clocking in at 55.15, just ahead of teammate Kristin Cihoski (57.57). Bard also won the 200-yard backstroke (2:01.98) and took third in the 50-yard freestyle with a season-best time of 23.91. Donna Smailis' second-place times of 1:52.04 in the 200-yard free and 55.51 in the 100-yard butterfly were also season bests. She also posted a victory for the Hoosiers in the 200-yard individual medley (2:05.46).

"Not being able to win the relays was a challenge since that is where you gain so many points," said head coach Ray Looze. "However, they really bounced back well and fought hard and won as many individual events as we thought they could. We knew depth would be an issue with several swimmers out due to injury. Yet, I think it was our best meet this season. They showed toughness and were inspired. The entire staff was very pleased with the passion women brought to this meet."

Freshman Amanda Smith was a double winner for IU, taking home the top spot in the in the 500 free (4:57.58) and 1,000-yard freestyle (10:07.72).

Sarah Stockwell's time of 1:04.34 was good for first place in the 100-yard breaststroke, while IU scored a 1-2-3 sweep in the 200 breast with Amilee Smith (2:19.00-season best), Stockwell (2:20.16) and Jessica Hill (2:20.52).

In the diving portion of the meet, Brittany Feldman took third in the 1-meter springboard with a score of 282.37, followed by Amy Korthauer (216.22). They switched spots in the 3-meter with Korthauer third (262.35) and Feldman fourth (236.78). The diving events took place on Thursday

The 400-yard medley relay team of Abby Cooper, Amanda Smith, Brittany Epperson and Cihoski placed third with a time of 3:33.11. Bard, Stockwell, Smailis and Epperson combined in the 200-yard medley relay for a second-place finish (1:43.54).

Competing Friday at the Ohio State Diving Invitational, Korthauer placed 18th in the prelims of the 3-meter springboard with a score of 237.05, while Feldman was 23rd (226.90).

Special thanks to Indiana for contributing this report.

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