Men’s Pac-12 Championship Preview: 5 Guys to Watch

Ryan Murphy
Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

By James Sica, Swimming World Intern

The Men’s Pac-12 Championship kicks off this Wednesday, March 4th and runs through March 7th. The Pac-12 psych sheets are available to view here.

The Golden Bears will enter this meet as the defending National Champions and the current #2 ranked men’s team (behind #1 Texas) in the most recent CSCAA poll. This seems like it is Cal’s meet to lose. They have the most depth of any team in the Pac-12 and should be contenders in every relay.

USC (#11), Stanford (#12), and Arizona (#13) were each ranked just outside the top 10 in the same CSCAA poll, so expect to see them contribute some fast swimming as they attempt to knock each other out in team placings. With so much talent in this conference, we thought we’d give you five swimmers to watch this weekend as they go head-to-head over the four-day contest.

Cristian Quintero

Cristian Quintero

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

This has been an unusual season for USC senior Cristian Quintero, whose eligibility was only set to run through NCAAs in 2014. Over the summer, however, it was announced he would be granted another year of eligibility and was named a captain of the USC squad, yet he was mysteriously absent from competition all fall. He has returned to USC in the spring, and is entered in the 100, 200, and 500 freestyles this weekend.

Quintero’s highest seed is only seventh in the 500 free, but don’t let his lower standings fool you. His seeds are from dual meet competition, not a mid-season invite like most of his competitors. Last year Quintero captured individual titles in the 200 and 500 free and was second in the 100 in addition to being one of the most dependable relay legs for USC. Expect this senior to make some noise in his events as he surely has his eyes on his last NCAA meet in March. 

Kevin Cordes

Photo Courtesy: David Farr

Photo Courtesy: David Farr

The fastest 100 and 200 breaststroker in history will again look to repeat his Pac-12 titles in both events on his way to three straight titles in both events. Cordes has not been as fast in-season this year as in past seasons, but a new head coach and an increasing focus on long-course swimming may explain the difference in times. It will be useful to compare his times at this year’s Pac-12s to where he was at this time last season. In 2014 he set meet records in both the 100 (51.23) and 200 (1:51.80) en route to breaking the American records in both events at NCAAs a few weeks later. In both events Cal senior Chuck Katis is seeded second to Cordes, with the best bet for an upset in the 100 breaststroke where his season best is only .05 behind Cordes (52.09 to 52.04).

Brad Tandy

Brad Tandy

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

The Arizona senior and meet record holder in the 50 freestyle returns this year as the top seed in the 50 freestyle by about 4-tenths of a second at 19.04. With NCAA co-champion Kristian Gkolomeev throwing down the fastest time in the country this season at SECs with a 18.64, look for Tandy to get out and be gunning for his meet record of 18.80 from last year’s meet to set himself up as the favorite going into NCAAs. Tandy is also seeded fourth in both the 100 breaststroke and 100 freestyle, with his best chance for a second individual title coming in the latter event if he can hold on after that first 50. Expect Tandy to help buoy Arizona’s sprint freestyle and medley relays with some blistering freestyle legs.

David Nolan

David Nolan wins the 200 IM.

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

This Stanford senior enters this meet at the top of his traditional events: he is the #1 seed in the 200 IM, the #2 seed in the 200 backstroke, and the #3 seed in the 100 back. In that 200 IM Nolan will be looking to grab his fourth straight Pac-12 title. The biggest threat to his title defense will come from the three Cal Bears who are seeded directly behind him; junior Josh Prenot, senior Will Hamilton, and sophomore Ryan Murphy are seeded second, third, and fourth respectively.

The backstrokes will be a bigger challenge for Nolan, with defending Pac-12 and NCAA champion Ryan Murphy ahead of him. Cal junior Jacob Pebley will also be in the mix for the backstroke titles (he actually finished ahead of Nolan in the 200 back at this meet last year) and will certainly be looking to bump Nolan as far down as possible. Nolan should also be a cornerstone on Stanford’s relays as well, with the only question being which relay will he be left off.

Ryan Murphy

Photo Courtesy: Griffin Scott

Photo Courtesy: Griffin Scott

The Cal-Berkley sophomore had arguably one of the greatest freshman season of any male NCAA swimmer in recent memory, capturing Pac-12 Newcomer of the Year and two individual NCAA titles in the 100 and 200 backstroke. This year, Murphy is entered in six events: the 200 IM, 50 freestyle, 100 butterfly, 100 backstroke, 200 backstroke, and 100 freestyle. While the backstrokes are likely a definite (he is seeded first in both by a wide margin), Murphy could have success in any of those other four events.

Last year he placed 8th in the 100 fly, but it seems like the 200 IM or the 50 freestyle would be the best bet as they would avoid a double on any day. Given the unpredictable nature of the 50 freestyle, I’d predict Murphy goes for the 200 IM and gets three head-to-head battles with Stanford’s David Nolan. Something to watch will also be Murphy’s impact on Cal’s relays. His 50 and 100 freestyle have continued to improve during his time at Cal (he’s actually the #1 seed in the 100 with a 42.83), and he was a huge contributor to their relays both at Pac-12s and NCAAs.

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