Big Ten Meet of the Week: No. 1 Indiana Proving its Worth

Photo Courtesy: David Wegiel

By Dan D’Addona.

Being ranked No. 1 in the nation is an honor, but one filled with pressure.

Athletes can talk all they want about how they don’t pay attention to the rankings until the end of the season, but when you are No. 1, there is no avoiding the attention and pressure that comes with it.

The only thing you can do is go out and try to prove it.

The Indiana men’s swim team did that this week after being named the top-ranked team in the first CSCAA poll.

The Hoosiers crushed No. 13 Tennessee 200-100 and No. 18 Kentucky 195-105 on Friday.

Meanwhile, the No. 12 Indiana women edged No. 11 Tennessee 152-148 and beat No. 21 Kentucky 169-131.

There was a plethora of No. 1 performances for the Hoosiers, who are looking strong in a loaded Big Ten conference.

Here are some of the top performances:

The Hoosier men started strong with the 200 medley relay team of Bob Glover, Ian Finnerty, Vini Lanza and Ali Khalafalla winning in 1:27.99.

Khalafalla won the 50 freestyle in a NCAA B cut time of 19.91.

Blake Pieroni and Anze Tavcar went 1-2 for the Hoosiers in the 200 freestyle, with Pieroni winning with a NCAA B cut time of 1:37.48. Tavcar touched second with a mark of 1:38.32. For the women, Kennedy Goss won with a time of 1:48.63.

The Indiana men’s sprinters overwhelmed the competition in the 100 freestyle, taking the top-three spots. Pieroni led the charge, touching first in a NCAA B cut time of 43.89. Tavcar was second in 44.30, while Khalafalla was third in 45.02.

Glover won the 100 backstroke in 48.83,.

In the men’s 1-meter dive, the Hoosiers were dominant. Michael Hixon took first with a score of 404.45, while James Connor was second with a total of 394.30. Joshua Arndt was third with 333.55 — all NCAA qualifying scores in the event.

In the women’s meet, Lilly King was back to her winning ways in the 100 breaststroke for the Indiana women, touching the wall in a NCAA B cut time of 1:02.13. King, the reigning NCAA champion, won the 200 breaststroke with a NCAA B cut time of 2:14.25.

In the women’s 1,000 freestyle, Stephanie Marchuk won in 10:01.63.

In the women’s 3-meter dive, Michal Bower won with a score of 342.15, while Jessica Parratto took second with a total of 293.80 with NCAA qualifying scores.

In the women’s 500 freestyle, Kennedy Goss touched the wall first in a time of 4:50.59. On the men’s side, Elkamash won with a NCAA B cut time of 4:24.44. Miller was third overall with a mark of 4:28.11.

In the 100 butterfly, with Lanza touching first with a NCAA B cut time of 48.07.

In the men’s 3-meter dive, with Connor winning with a score of 394.20.

The Hoosier men put an exclamation point on their day, as the 400 freestyle relay team of Khalafalla, Pieroni, Tavcar and Lorentz won with a time of 2:57.11.

Tennessee’s Kira Toussaint, Colleen Callahan, Maddy Banic and Alex Cleveland won the 200 medley relay (1:40.87). Toussaint won the 100 backstroke (53.56) and 100 freestyle (49.44).

Heather Lundstrom won the 200 butterfly (1:59.36). Banic won the 50 freestyle (23.45), leading a 1-2-3 finish with Cleveland (23.49) and Erika Brown (23.67). Banic won the 100 butterfly (54.26) ahead of Lundstrom (54.63).

Micah Bohon, Brown, Toussaint and Emily Allen won the 400 freestyle relay (3:22.82).

Tennessee’s Peter Stevens won the 100 breaststroke (55.01). Matthew Dunphy won the 200 breaststroke (2:02.12). Sam McHugh won the 200 IM (1:49.2).

Kentucky’s Drew Aviotti won the 1,000 freestyle (9:07.71). Kyle Higgins won the 200 butterfly (1:45.5). Walker Thaning won the 200 backstroke (1:46.97).

Danielle Galyer won the 200 backstroke (1:57.52). Rebecca Hamperian won 1-meter diving (299.1). Asia Seidt won the 200 IM (2:00.21).

With all of these top performances from many of the top swimmers and top teams in the country, it makes the victory even more impressive and meaningful for the new No. 1.

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