Indiana Men Fly Past SMU

DALLAS, TX, November 5. INDIANA’S Men pushed their dual-meet record to 3-1 this season with a 154-89 conquest of SMU on Oct. 30 in Dallas, Texas per reports from IU.

The Hoosiers claimed eight of the 13 event titles, while a quartet (senior Marc Carlton, freshman Todd Patrick, sophomore Colin Russell and junior Kevin Swander) of the Cream and Crimson each picked up a pair of event titles.

"We did what we were supposed to do today," Head Coach Ray Looze said. "It was a good challenge. We are pretty tired after a sprint format. The only thing I would have liked to see get better is that we are losing a lot of relays. We need more work on our fundamentals. These meets really helped us see where we are. It gives us a good idea of what we need to do to prepare for next weekend"

In the initial event of the meet, IU jumped out to a quick 15-2 lead as freshman Ben Hesen, Swander, senior Murph Halasz and Russell picked up the crown in the 200-yard medley relay with a 1:32.33. Junior Mike Jones, senior Thomas Clavier, sophomore Scott Tanner and sophomore Kyle Ruth finished in second in 1:32.87. SMU's Eric Hadley, Travis Wolther, Brett Denham and Emilio Garmendia placed third with a 1:38.22.

In the first individual event of the day, IU stretched its lead to 31-5 by sweeping the top three spots in the 1,000-yard freestyle. Freshman John Kevin Koehler won the event title with a 9:34.84 clocking, while sophomore Ryan McNeill took second in 9:37.77. Additionally, freshman Alex Brunfeldt placed third with a 9:39.83. Jessen Wabeke (10:06.96) and William Balderamos (10:30.06) took fifth and sixth for SMU.

Indiana pushed its lead to 44-11 in the 200-yard freestyle after Patrick posted a personal-best 1:40.68 to claim first place. SMU's Fredi Postma took second in 1:41.76, while IU sophomore Lee Houchin took third in 1:43.11. J.D. White took fourth for SMU in 1:43.87, while Swander finished in fifth for IU in 1:45.73.

In the 50-yard freestyle, the Hoosiers extended their lead to 50-24 even though Camilo Becerra picked up the event title for SMU in 20.73. IU's Ruth ended up with runner-up status in 21.03, while SMU's Per Nylin took third in 21.27. Senior David Winck swam to fourth place in 21.92 for IU to beat out SMU's Justin Stephenson (21.93) who placed fifth.

SMU starting closing the gap to 58-35 with its second consecutive event title when Ian Clark captured the 400-yard IM with a 3:57.25 clocking. Bryant placed second for IU in 4:02.51, while Jensen finished in third in 4:03.64. SMU's Justin Smith wound up in fourth with a 4:04.99, while Jones took fifth for IU in 4:06.13.

In the one-meter diving break, Indiana countered SMU's short burst to move the lead to 73-39 as senior Marc Carlton picked up the title with a 330.22 string of dives. Senior Brian Metzler came in second with a 306.00, while Beau Sydes finished in third for SMU with a 297.37. All three marks cleared the NCAA zone qualifying threshold in the event.

SMU cut IU's lead to 82-49 in the 100-yard butterfly as Becerra won the event in 48.71. Indiana claimed the next three spots as Clavier posted a career-low 49.12 for second; Halasz took third in 51.12 and sophomore Scott Tanner placed fourth in 51.30.

IU added to its lead, 96-54, when Russell seized another event title in the 100-yard freestyle in 46.51. SMU's Nylin took second with a 46.96, while Houchin (47.06) and Winck (47.14) finished in third and fourth, respectively. SMU's White closed out scoring in the event with a fifth-place 47.65.

Indiana eclipsed the century mark in the 100-yard backstroke to take a 111-58 by sweeping the top two spots. Patrick captured the crown with a 50.67 clocking, while Hesen finished in second in 50.73. SMU's Clark took third in 50.77, while Jones placed in fourth with a 51.61.

The Hoosiers moved their lead to 120-68 in the 500-yard freestyle. SMU's Postma won the event in 4:36.14, while Brunfeldt (4:36.72) took second, Bryant (4:40.83) placed third and Koehler (4:43.44) finished in fourth for IU. SMU's Smith closed out scoring in the event with a fifth-place 4:45.74.

In the three-meter springboard break, Carlton picked up his second triumph with a 308.62 to help IU extend its lead to 133-74. Senior Alex Burns took third with a 273.89 tally, while classmate Ryan Fagan took fifth with a 246.00. SMU's Sydes claimed second with a 302.70, while Chad Chokel finished in fourth for SMU with a 253.65.

"The travel was tough on our divers since you sometimes leave your legs on the airplane," Volunteer Assistant Coach Oscar Delgado said. "They did a great job today and it was a great group effort. Brian Metzler did a really nice job and Marc Carlton ended up with a pair of big wins."

In the final individual event of the contest, Indiana picked up the top two spots to stretch its lead to 148-78. Swander (56.03) and Clavier (57.51) claimed first and second place, while SMU's Clark took third in 58.40.

In the culminating race of the meet, Indiana closed out the Mustangs 154-89 after the 200-yard freestyle relay. SMU's Becerra, Postma, Nylin and Stephenson (1:22.70) out-touched IU's Patrick, Houchin, Ruth and Russell (1:22.92) to capture the final event crown.

Next up, the Cream and Crimson plays host to No. 15 Northwestern on Nov. 5 in the Counsilman-Billingsley Aquatic Center at 3 p.m., before battling No. 20 Kentucky and Southwest Missouri State on Nov. 6 in Bloomington at 1 p.m.

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