Big Ten Men’s Championship Day 3 Prelims: Indiana Depth Comes Through Again

Owen McDonald. Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

The 2026 Big Ten Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships continued with the Day 3 prelims on Friday, Feb. 27, in Madison, Wisconsin.

The events on the docket are the 100 backstroke, 200 breaststroke, 500 freestyle and 50 freestyle.

Here is a look at what happened on Friday morning:

Big Ten Men’s 100 Backstroke

Indiana senior Owen McDonald got the day started with a bang, breaking the meet record in the 100 backstroke to take the top seed in 44.28.

His time is three hundredths of a second faster than Indiana’s Brendan Burns in 2022.

Fellow Hoosier Mira Knedla took the second seed in 44.78 and Raekwon Noel grabbed the fourth spot in 44.88, setting up what could be a huge point swing for Indiana.

Michigan senior Jack Wilkening took the third seed in 44.79.

The fifth spot went to Penn State senior Matthew Bittner (44.98), followed by USC junior Michel Chmielewski (45.08), Purdue senior Alex Hotta (45.38) and Northwestern junior Stuart Seymour (45.42).

Event 9  Men 100 Yard Backstroke
==================================================================
     B1G Meet: ! 44.31  2/25/2022 Brendan A Burns, Indiana
         Pool: # 45.93  2025      Stuart Seymour, NU
                 46.29  A NCAA Qualifying
    Name           Year School               Seed    Prelims              
==================================================================
                      === Preliminaries ===                       
 
  1 McDonald, Owen   SR Indiana             44.13      44.28!qA     
    r:+0.88  10.61        21.71 (11.10)
          33.05 (11.34)       44.28 (11.23)
  2 Knedla, Mira     SO Indiana             44.78      44.67#qA     
    r:+0.89  10.46        21.60 (11.14)
          33.14 (11.54)       44.67 (11.53)
  3 Wilkening, Jack  SR Michigan            46.13      44.79#qA     
    r:+1.03  10.38        21.46 (11.08)
          33.10 (11.64)       44.79 (11.69)
  4 Noel, Raekwon N  SO Indiana             44.91      44.88#qA     
             10.79        21.76 (10.97)
          33.36 (11.60)       44.88 (11.52)
  5 Bittner, Matthe  SR Penn St             45.72      44.98#qA     
    r:+0.88  10.38        21.23 (10.85)
          32.91 (11.68)       44.98 (12.07)
  6 Chmielewski, Mi  JR Southern Cal        45.63      45.08#qA     
             11.06        22.25 (11.19)
          33.65 (11.40)       45.08 (11.43)
  7 Hotta, Alex      SR Purdue              46.04      45.38#qA     
    r:+0.98  10.57        21.83 (11.26)
          33.60 (11.77)       45.38 (11.78)
  8 Seymour, Stuart  JR Northwestern        44.64      45.42#qA     
    r:+1.29  10.93        22.15 (11.22)
          33.92 (11.77)       45.42 (11.50)
 -----------------------------------------------------------------
  9 Welker, Nathan   JR Wisconsin           45.79      45.47#qA     
             10.75        21.97 (11.22)
          33.69 (11.72)       45.47 (11.78)
 10 Carlbaum, Vidar  SO Indiana             46.67      45.65#qA     
    r:+0.93  10.56        21.80 (11.24)
          33.60 (11.80)       45.65 (12.05)
 11 Gerchik, David   JR Northwestern        46.38      45.73#qA     
    r:+0.90  10.70        22.02 (11.32)
          33.91 (11.89)       45.73 (11.82)
 12 Jahn, Cornelius  SO Ohio State          45.99      45.75#qA     
    r:+1.12  10.97        22.36 (11.39)
          34.09 (11.73)       45.75 (11.66)
 12 Van Westering,   SR Indiana             46.40      45.75#qA     
             10.75        21.85 (11.10)
          33.65 (11.80)       45.75 (12.10)
 14 Morley, Cooper   SR Penn St             45.37      45.84#qA     
             10.75        22.04 (11.29)
          33.87 (11.83)       45.84 (11.97)
 15 Roth, Joseph     SO Ohio State          46.70      46.01 qA     
             10.63        21.97 (11.34)
          33.85 (11.88)       46.01 (12.16)
 16 Kos, Oliver      SO Northwestern        46.45      46.12 qA     
             10.79        22.23 (11.44)
          34.29 (12.06)       46.12 (11.83)

Big Ten Men’s 200 Breaststroke

A day after putting four in the finals of the 100 breaststroke, led by champion Josh Bey, the Hoosiers put three in the finals of the 200.

Bey took the top seed in 1:50.59, breaking the pool record along the way.

Penn State senior Mario Lazzerini took he second seed in 1:51.14, followed by Michigan freshman Luka Mladenovic (1:51.40).

Seeds 4-5 went to the other Hoosiers with Toby Barnett finishing in 1:51.59 and Noah Cakir getting to the wall in 1:52.23.

Minnesota sophomore Joe Polyak took the sixth seed in 1:52.39, followed by Northwestern’s Joshua Staples (1:52.93) and Wisconsin’s Dominik Mark Torok (1:53.06).

Event 10  Men 200 Yard Breaststroke
==================================================================
     B1G Meet: ! 1:49.45  2/25/2022 Maxwell J McHugh, Minnesota
         Pool: # 1:53.78  2021      Max McHugh, MINN
                 1:54.95  A NCAA Qualifying
    Name           Year School               Seed    Prelims              
==================================================================
                      === Preliminaries ===                       
 
  1 Bey, Josh        FR Indiana           1:52.51    1:50.59#qA     
    r:+0.68  25.05        53.21 (28.16)
        1:21.98 (28.77)     1:50.59 (28.61)
  2 Lazzerini, Mari  SR Penn St           1:50.93    1:51.14#qA     
    r:+0.66  25.06        53.21 (28.15)
        1:21.91 (28.70)     1:51.14 (29.23)
  3 Mladenovic, Luk  FR Michigan          1:51.99    1:51.40#qA     
    r:+0.73  25.03        52.81 (27.78)
        1:21.80 (28.99)     1:51.40 (29.60)
  4 Barnett, Toby    JR Indiana           1:53.76    1:51.59#qA     
    r:+0.67  25.40        53.49 (28.09)
        1:22.21 (28.72)     1:51.59 (29.38)
  5 Cakir, Noah      FR Indiana           1:51.68    1:52.23#qA     
    r:+0.71  25.65        53.96 (28.31)
        1:23.09 (29.13)     1:52.23 (29.14)
  6 Polyak, Joe      SO Minnesota         1:56.88    1:52.39#qA     
    r:+0.72  25.19        53.65 (28.46)
        1:22.71 (29.06)     1:52.39 (29.68)
  7 Staples, Joshua  SO Northwestern      1:54.71    1:52.93#qA     
    r:+0.72  24.65        52.86 (28.21)
        1:22.49 (29.63)     1:52.93 (30.44)
  8 Mark Torok, Dom  SR Wisconsin         1:55.57    1:53.06#qA     
    r:+0.66  26.17        54.73 (28.56)
        1:23.70 (28.97)     1:53.06 (29.36)
 -----------------------------------------------------------------
  9 Blume, Maxwell   SR Purdue            1:54.87    1:53.18#qA     
    r:+0.66  25.26        53.40 (28.14)
        1:22.64 (29.24)     1:53.18 (30.54)
 10 Jankovics, Tris  SR Ohio State        1:54.24    1:53.32#qA     
    r:+0.69  25.30        54.17 (28.87)
        1:23.44 (29.27)     1:53.32 (29.88)
 11 Avakov, Alexei   SO Indiana           1:53.82    1:53.39#qA     
    r:+0.67  24.66        52.19 (27.53)
        1:21.51 (29.32)     1:53.39 (31.88)
 12 Gaerthofner, Dr  FR Wisconsin         1:56.84    1:53.76#qA     
    r:+0.70  25.37        54.06 (28.69)
        1:23.52 (29.46)     1:53.76 (30.24)
 13 Gamilla, Jaedda  JR Michigan          1:55.46    1:53.96 qA     
    r:+0.67  25.96        54.70 (28.74)
        1:23.79 (29.09)     1:53.96 (30.17)
 14 Chan, Junhao     SO Southern Cal      1:53.03    1:54.25 qA     
    r:+0.63  24.91        53.56 (28.65)
        1:23.43 (29.87)     1:54.25 (30.82)
 15 Gulledge, Travi  SO Indiana           1:54.74    1:54.29 qA     
    r:+0.69  24.84        53.42 (28.58)
        1:23.38 (29.96)     1:54.29 (30.91)
 16 Kalafat, Ozan    SR Michigan          1:59.06    1:54.38 qA     
    r:+0.62  25.24        53.79 (28.55)
        1:23.25 (29.46)     1:54.38 (31.13)

Big Ten Men’s 500 Freestyle

Indiana senior Zalan Sarkany broke the pool record in the 500 free to take the top seed in 4:10.99, going 1-2 with teammate Luke Whitlock (4:11.67). Aaron Shackell took the fourth spot (4:14.10) continuing the strong morning for the Hoosiers.

Michigan sophomore Lorne Wigginton took the third seed in 4:13.88.

The fifth seed went to Wisconsin freshman Enzo Solitario (4:14.33), followed by Minnesota sophomore Luke Brennan (4:16.46) and the OSU duo of Jordi Vilchez (4:16.57) and Mason Edmund (4:16.64).

 Event 11  Men 500 Yard Freestyle
==================================================================
     B1G Meet: ! 4:09.29  2/22/2018 Felix O Auboeck, Michigan
         Pool: # 4:17.80  2024      Bar Soloveychik, MINN
                 4:18.07  A NCAA Qualifying
    Name           Year School               Seed    Prelims              
==================================================================
                      === Preliminaries ===                       
 
  1 Sarkany, Zalan   SR Indiana           4:09.57    4:10.99#qA     
    r:+0.68  22.29        46.89 (24.60)
        1:12.24 (25.35)     1:37.83 (25.59)
        2:03.37 (25.54)     2:29.06 (25.69)
        2:54.76 (25.70)     3:20.43 (25.67)
        3:45.87 (25.44)     4:10.99 (25.12)
  2 Whitlock, Luke   SO Indiana           4:11.82    4:11.67#qA     
    r:+0.71  22.99        47.95 (24.96)
        1:13.51 (25.56)     1:39.26 (25.75)
        2:04.84 (25.58)     2:30.36 (25.52)
        2:55.99 (25.63)     3:21.54 (25.55)
        3:46.83 (25.29)     4:11.67 (24.84)
  3 Wigginton, Lorn  SO Michigan          4:14.50    4:13.88#qA     
    r:+0.68  22.79        47.50 (24.71)
        1:12.69 (25.19)     1:38.26 (25.57)
        2:04.02 (25.76)     2:29.86 (25.84)
        2:55.65 (25.79)     3:21.66 (26.01)
        3:47.90 (26.24)     4:13.88 (25.98)
  4 Shackell, Aaron  JR Indiana           4:11.14    4:14.10#qA     
    r:+0.73  22.09        46.33 (24.24)
        1:11.37 (25.04)     1:36.74 (25.37)
        2:02.04 (25.30)     2:27.79 (25.75)
        2:53.94 (26.15)     3:20.60 (26.66)
        3:47.53 (26.93)     4:14.10 (26.57)
  5 Solitario, Enzo  FR Wisconsin         4:16.47    4:14.33#qA     
    r:+0.71  23.25        48.54 (25.29)
        1:14.07 (25.53)     1:39.49 (25.42)
        2:05.13 (25.64)     2:30.69 (25.56)
        2:56.83 (26.14)     3:23.04 (26.21)
        3:48.78 (25.74)     4:14.33 (25.55)
  6 Brennan, Luke    SO Minnesota         4:21.46    4:16.46#qA     
    r:+0.75  23.65        49.00 (25.35)
        1:14.93 (25.93)     1:41.02 (26.09)
        2:06.93 (25.91)     2:32.97 (26.04)
        2:59.11 (26.14)     3:25.38 (26.27)
        3:51.02 (25.64)     4:16.46 (25.44)
  7 Vilchez, Jordi   SO Ohio State        4:11.79    4:16.57#qA     
    r:+0.72  23.51        49.04 (25.53)
        1:15.01 (25.97)     1:41.09 (26.08)
        2:07.19 (26.10)     2:32.72 (25.53)
        2:58.68 (25.96)     3:24.61 (25.93)
        3:50.69 (26.08)     4:16.57 (25.88)
  8 Edmund, Mason    SR Ohio State        4:17.89    4:16.64#qA     
    r:+0.78  23.24        48.42 (25.18)
        1:13.84 (25.42)     1:39.68 (25.84)
        2:05.80 (26.12)     2:32.04 (26.24)
        2:58.29 (26.25)     3:24.62 (26.33)
        3:51.05 (26.43)     4:16.64 (25.59)
 -----------------------------------------------------------------
  9 Eichel, Daniel   SO Minnesota         4:21.36    4:16.70#qA     
    r:+0.75  23.61        48.92 (25.31)
        1:14.53 (25.61)     1:40.55 (26.02)
        2:06.59 (26.04)     2:32.65 (26.06)
        2:58.60 (25.95)     3:24.82 (26.22)
        3:51.00 (26.18)     4:16.70 (25.70)
 10 Sauve, Antoine   FR Michigan          4:20.74    4:17.57#qA     
    r:+0.71  22.91        48.04 (25.13)
        1:13.58 (25.54)     1:39.49 (25.91)
        2:05.61 (26.12)     2:31.61 (26.00)
        2:58.26 (26.65)     3:25.15 (26.89)
        3:52.19 (27.04)     4:17.57 (25.38)
 11 Ellis, Luke      FR Indiana           4:16.49    4:17.70#qA     
    r:+0.73  23.09        48.31 (25.22)
        1:13.95 (25.64)     1:39.93 (25.98)
        2:06.01 (26.08)     2:32.18 (26.17)
        2:58.71 (26.53)     3:25.32 (26.61)
        3:51.91 (26.59)     4:17.70 (25.79)
 12 Chmielewski, Kr  JR Southern Cal      4:12.24    4:18.07 qA     
    r:+0.66  22.49        47.19 (24.70)
        1:12.81 (25.62)     1:38.72 (25.91)
        2:04.76 (26.04)     2:30.71 (25.95)
        2:57.10 (26.39)     3:23.86 (26.76)
        3:51.21 (27.35)     4:18.07 (26.86)
 13 Romano, Yoav     SO Wisconsin         4:14.00    4:18.29 q      
    r:+0.66  23.20        48.50 (25.30)
        1:14.40 (25.90)     1:40.25 (25.85)
        2:06.32 (26.07)     2:32.73 (26.41)
        2:59.49 (26.76)     3:26.10 (26.61)
        3:52.67 (26.57)     4:18.29 (25.62)
 14 Mackesy, Evan    SO Purdue            4:22.22    4:18.62 q      
    r:+0.68  23.42        48.99 (25.57)
        1:14.83 (25.84)     1:41.18 (26.35)
        2:07.39 (26.21)     2:33.60 (26.21)
        2:59.85 (26.25)     3:26.12 (26.27)
        3:52.42 (26.30)     4:18.62 (26.20)
 15 Jones, Charlie   SR Wisconsin         4:17.22    4:18.74 q      
    r:+0.72  23.36        48.73 (25.37)
        1:14.35 (25.62)     1:40.16 (25.81)
        2:06.42 (26.26)     2:32.90 (26.48)
        2:59.46 (26.56)     3:26.10 (26.64)
        3:52.69 (26.59)     4:18.74 (26.05)
 16 Nosack, Diego    JR Northwestern      4:20.71    4:18.89 q      
    r:+0.72  23.43        48.82 (25.39)
        1:14.78 (25.96)     1:40.69 (25.91)
        2:06.72 (26.03)     2:32.97 (26.25)
        2:59.23 (26.26)     3:26.07 (26.84)
        3:53.05 (26.98)     4:18.89 (25.84)

Big Ten Men’s 50 Freestyle

Ohio State sophomore Matthew Klinge sprinted to the top seed in the 50 freestyle. He got to the wall in 18.94 to break the pool record.

Michigan senior Tyler Ray touched in 19 seconds flat, ahead of Indiana junior Mikkel Lee (19.11), Purdue freshman Janik Dzirkalis (19.21), Wisconsin’s Ben Wiegand (19.28), Michigan sophomore Ole Eidam (19.34), Indiana junior Dylan Smiley (19.35) and Wisconsin senior Cooper Scharff (19.36).

 Event 12  Men 50 Yard Freestyle
==================================================================
     B1G Meet: ! 18.69  2/22/2018 Bowen Becker, Minnesota
         Pool: # 19.35  2024      Taiko Torepe-Ormsby, WISC
                 19.43  A NCAA Qualifying
    Name           Year School               Seed    Prelims              
==================================================================
                      === Preliminaries ===                       
 
  1 Klinge, Matthew  SO Ohio State          18.86      18.94#qA     
     r:+0.80  9.29         18.94 (9.65)
  2 Ray, Tyler       SR Michigan            19.02      19.00#qA     
     r:+0.68  9.24         19.00 (9.76)
  3 Lee, Mikkel      JR Indiana             19.03      19.11#qA     
     r:+0.61  9.27         19.11 (9.84)
  4 Dzirkalis, Jani  FR Purdue              19.32      19.21#qA     
     r:+0.62  9.19        19.21 (10.02)
  5 Wiegand, Ben     5Y Wisconsin           19.39      19.28#qA     
     r:+0.65  9.20        19.28 (10.08)
  6 Eidam, Ole       SO Michigan            19.58      19.34#qA     
     r:+0.62  9.34        19.34 (10.00)
  7 Smiley, Dylan    JR Indiana             19.23      19.35#qA     
     r:+0.65  9.40         19.35 (9.95)
  8 Scharff, Cooper  SR Wisconsin           19.73      19.36 qA     
     r:+0.59  9.25        19.36 (10.11)
 -----------------------------------------------------------------
  9 Hanson, Rasmus   SR Ohio State          19.73      19.38 qA     
     r:+0.64  9.41         19.38 (9.97)
 10 Wilkening, Jack  SR Michigan            19.91      19.42 qA     
     r:+0.73  9.53         19.42 (9.89)
 11 Gulledge, Travi  SO Indiana             19.65      19.44 q      
     r:+0.67  9.31        19.44 (10.13)
 12 Thomas, Nathani  JR Purdue              19.38      19.46 q      
     r:+0.62  9.34        19.46 (10.12)
 13 Navikonis, Toma  SR Ohio State          19.79      19.54 q      
     r:+0.69  9.57         19.54 (9.97)
 13 Carlbaum, Vidar  SO Indiana             19.45      19.54 q      
     r:+0.70  9.45        19.54 (10.09)
 15 Duncan, Caden    JR Northwestern        19.72      19.55 q      
     r:+0.68  9.56         19.55 (9.99)
 16 Ismail, Ahmed    SO Ohio State          19.50      19.61 q      
     r:+0.71  9.53        19.61 (10.08)

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