#13 Hoosier Men Top Big Ten Foe Michigan State 157-83

EAST LANSING, MI, January 23. INDIANA, ranked #13 in the nation, improved to 9-3 on the season and 3-1 against Big Ten teams after vanquishing Michigan State, 157-83, on Jan. 21 at the Charles McCaffree Pool in East Lansing, Mich, per IU reports.

Overall, the Hoosiers won 12 out of the 13 events, while sophomore Colin Russell paced IU with three event titles.

With the victory, IU is just one triumph away from accomplishing something it hasn't done in 20 seasons – a 10-win dual-meet campaign. The last time IU picked up 10 head-to-head wins, the Hoosiers went 10-2 with a Big Ten title under James "Doc" Counsilman in 1985.

"This was most of the team's first time swimming at Michigan State," Head Coach Ray Looze said. "It is a challenging pool to swim in since there is a big change in depth from the starting end, that is very deep, to shallow end. I thought our guys struggled with our turns and starts, but I was very pleased with the swimming we did. It was nice to win as many events as we did. We came into Michigan State and did what we ought to do as the 13th-ranked team in the country. Now, we need to get ourselves ready for a very big challenge tomorrow. Hopefully, this meet will prepare us."

In the opening event of the competition, IU's quartet of freshman Ben Hesen, junior Kevin Swander, senior Murph Halasz and sophomore Lee Houchin out-touched MSU to the wall in the 200-yard medley relay in 1:31.03. Junior Mike Jones, classmate Thomas Clavier, sophomore Scott Tanner and classmate Drew Ossakow placed third in 1:34.90.

IU followed up that performance with a top-two sweep in the 1,000-yard freestyle as freshman Alex Brunfeldt won the event in 9:26.77, while sophomore Ryan McNeill finished in second in 9:37.50. MSU's David Habel took third in 9:43.50.

In the 200-yard freestyle, the Cream and Crimson captured the top-three spots when senior Richard Bryant (1:41.66), junior Sergiy Fesenko (1:41.82) and Houchin (1:42.28) finished one-two-three in the event to keep Michigan State at bay.

In the 50-yard freestyle, Russell notched his first crown of the meet with a first-place time of 21.37, while Matt Wisniewski came in second for MSU in 21.40. Ossakow rounded out the top three in 21.76.

In the 200-yard IM, freshman Todd Patrick blew away the field with a 1:50.07 to win the event, while Swander placed second in 1:54.49. MSU's Ian Clutten came in third in 1:54.69.

During the one-meter diving break, Indiana proved just how good it is on the boards with six personal records falling to the wayside as well as seven marks over the NCAA zone-qualifying standard. Junior Jesse Rappaport came in first with a personal-best 339.00, while freshman Taylor Roberts placed second with a career-best 311.95. Reigning Big Ten Diver of the Week Marc Carlton rounded out the top-three with a 305.32 string of dives. In non-scoring action, junior Ryan Fagan (340.42), sophomore Brian Mariano (334.65) and senior Alex Burns (330.37) all recorded personal bests and zone-qualifying marks, while senior Brian Metzler cleared the zone standard with a 304.35 and freshman Will Bohonyi registered a career-best 257.40.

After returning to the swimming side of the equation, IU accomplished another top-three monopoly as Halasz claimed the 100-yard butterfly title in 50.73. Tanner finished in second for IU in 51.28, while Clavier took third in 51.53.

In the 100-yard freestyle, MSU's Adam Schmitt picked up the sole event victory for the Spartans with a 46.36 time. IU, however, had two competitors swimming in the event for the first time in their collegiate careers. Fesenko placed second just behind Schmitt in 46.39, while Bryant placed fifth in 47.85 in both of their initial runs at the 100y free. Meanwhile, senior David Winck rounded out the top three with a 47.05.

In the 100-yard backstroke, the Hoosiers got back on track with a top-two sweep. Hesen came in first in 49.61, while Jones finished in second in 51.99. MSU's Rudi Wagenaar closed out the top three with a 52.69.

In the final distance freestyle event of the meet, Russell claimed his second title with a 4:35.62 clocking in the 500-yard freestyle to out-touch Brunfeldt (4:37.28) to the wall. MSU's Habel wound up in third with a 4:41.63.

In the three-meter diving break, the Cream and Crimson dominated once again with four personal records and two zone qualifiers. Carlton won his fifth event in his past six tries with a 359.95, while Burns took second with a career-high 307.20. MSU's Matt Akerley closed out the top three with a 295.07. Additionally, Rappaport posted a personal-best 280.12 for fourth place, while Roberts notched a career-best and zone-qualifying tally of 335.32 in a non-scoring effort. Also of note, Bohonyi continued his career day with a 224.85 in exhibition action.

In the final individual race of the competition, Swander won the 100-yard breaststroke in 55.70. MSU's Clutten touched just behind with a 55.77 in one of the closest finishes of the day. IU junior Hank Baldwin placed third in 57.85. Notably, freshman Ronnie Hehn recorded a personal-best time of 58.22 for fourth place.

In the 200-yard freestyle relay, IU closed out the Spartans as Russell, Patrick, Houchin and Winck claimed the crown in 1:23.98. Additionally, Ossakow, Tanner, Jones and Bryant took third in 1:27.63.

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