Big Ten Men’s Championships, Night 2: Gal Groumi Sets Meet Record in 200 IM; Indiana Leads Team Race

Photo Courtesy: Peter H. Bick

Big Ten Men’s Championships, Night 2: Gal Groumi Sets Meet Record in 200 IM

After a stellar morning swim, there was no catching Michigan’s Gal Groumi in the men’s 200 IM Thursday night at the Big Ten Championships.

Groumi went 1:40.48, routing the five-year-old meet record set of Indiana’s Vini Lanza. He led a 1-2 finish for Michigan, which took four of the top five spots. It’s one of several lead changes in a wide open meet in the team standings.

All the action from McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion:

Team Standings

 Men - Team Rankings - Through Event 7                       
 
  1. Indiana University                466   2. Michigan, University of         437.5
  3. Ohio State University             428   4. Wisconsin, University of        388.5
  5. University of Minnesota         271.5   6. Purdue University               254.5
  7. Pennsylvania State University     229   8. Northwestern University           215

500 freestyle

The 500 free brought high drama, thanks to Yigit Aslan. The Wisconsin junior surged in the final 50 to get over Minnesota’s Bar Soloveychik by .29 seconds. Aslan went 4:11.20, Soloveychik 4:11.49. Aslan split 23.64 coming home to surge past Soloveychik’s 24.08.

Ohio State’s Alex Axon finished third in 4:13.90, ahead of Northwestern’s Andrew Martin. Buckeyes finished third, fifth, sixth and seventh to leapfrog over overnight leader Indiana and into the lead, with Wisconsin second. The Hoosiers are fourth. That’s lead change No. 1.

Event 3  Men 500 Yard Freestyle
=========================================================================
     B1G Meet: ! 4:09.29  2/22/2018 Felix O Auboeck, Michigan
                 4:10.74  A NCAA Qualifying
                 4:21.99  B NCAA Provisional
    Name           Year School            Prelims     Finals       Points 
=========================================================================
                            === A - Final ===                            
 
  1 Aslan, Yigit     JR Wisconsin-B1      4:13.35    4:11.20 B       32  
                 23.52        48.91 (25.39)
        1:14.48 (25.57)     1:40.06 (25.58)
        2:05.47 (25.41)     2:30.95 (25.48)
        2:56.72 (25.77)     3:22.59 (25.87)
        3:47.56 (24.97)     4:11.20 (23.64)
  2 Soloveychik, Ba  JR Minnesota-B1      4:12.76    4:11.49 B       28  
                 23.12        48.32 (25.20)
        1:13.61 (25.29)     1:39.12 (25.51)
        2:04.81 (25.69)     2:30.63 (25.82)
        2:56.54 (25.91)     3:22.32 (25.78)
        3:47.41 (25.09)     4:11.49 (24.08)
  3 Axon, Alex       SO Ohio State-B1     4:14.89    4:13.90 B       27  
                 23.36        49.00 (25.64)
        1:14.70 (25.70)     1:40.53 (25.83)
        2:06.30 (25.77)     2:32.00 (25.70)
        2:57.81 (25.81)     3:23.67 (25.86)
        3:49.38 (25.71)     4:13.90 (24.52)
  4 Martin, Andrew   GR Northwestern-B1   4:16.06    4:14.62 B       26  
                 23.59        49.40 (25.81)
        1:15.52 (26.12)     1:41.28 (25.76)
        2:07.15 (25.87)     2:33.02 (25.87)
        2:58.78 (25.76)     3:24.45 (25.67)
        3:49.75 (25.30)     4:14.62 (24.87)
  5 Metzler, Alex    JR Ohio State-B1     4:17.78    4:15.78 B       25  
                 23.43        48.78 (25.35)
        1:14.24 (25.46)     1:40.09 (25.85)
        2:06.30 (26.21)     2:32.56 (26.26)
        2:59.05 (26.49)     3:25.19 (26.14)
        3:50.91 (25.72)     4:15.78 (24.87)
  6 Clark, Charles   SR Ohio State-B1     4:16.41    4:16.62 B       24  
                 23.67        49.32 (25.65)
        1:15.04 (25.72)     1:40.65 (25.61)
        2:06.50 (25.85)     2:32.29 (25.79)
        2:58.29 (26.00)     3:24.24 (25.95)
        3:50.48 (26.24)     4:16.62 (26.14)
  7 Campbell, Samue  SO Ohio State-B1     4:15.49    4:19.08 B       23  
                 23.63        49.22 (25.59)
        1:15.01 (25.79)     1:41.13 (26.12)
        2:07.27 (26.14)     2:33.72 (26.45)
        3:00.19 (26.47)     3:27.06 (26.87)
        3:53.77 (26.71)     4:19.08 (25.31)
  8 Zucker, Logan    SO Michigan-B1       4:17.31    4:20.11 B       22  
                 23.83        49.48 (25.65)
        1:15.66 (26.18)     1:41.83 (26.17)
        2:07.74 (25.91)     2:34.13 (26.39)
        3:00.42 (26.29)     3:27.22 (26.80)
        3:54.20 (26.98)     4:20.11 (25.91)

200 individual medley

Gal Groumi went 1:40.48, routing the 1:41.05 meet record that had stood since 2019. That’s an A cut for the Israeli international.

It’s a 1-2 for Israeli-via-Michigan swimmers, with Eitan Ben-Shitrit second in 1:42.26. Michigan also finished fourth and fifth, with Colin Geer and Jacques Wenger, to jump into first. Indiana is back up to second with Ohio State down to fourth.

Kaiser Neverman of Minnesota won bronze in 1:42.75. Wisconsin finished seventh and eighth.

Event 4  Men 200 Yard IM
=========================================================================
     B1G Meet: ! 1:41.05  2/28/2019 Vinicius M Lanza, Indiana
                 1:41.03  A NCAA Qualifying
                 1:46.16  B NCAA Provisional
    Name           Year School            Prelims     Finals       Points 
=========================================================================
                            === A - Final ===                            
 
  1 Cohen Groumi, G  JR Michigan-B1       1:41.76    1:40.48!A       32  
                 21.49        46.07 (24.58)
        1:15.68 (29.61)     1:40.48 (24.80)
  2 Ben-Shitrit, Ei  SO Michigan-B1       1:42.61    1:42.26 B       28  
                 21.88        46.79 (24.91)
        1:17.04 (30.25)     1:42.26 (25.22)
  3 Neverman, Kaise  SR Minnesota-B1      1:43.08    1:42.75 B       27  
                 22.16        48.18 (26.02)
        1:17.55 (29.37)     1:42.75 (25.20)
  4 Geer, Colin      FR Michigan-B1       1:43.22    1:42.82 B       26  
                 22.19        47.57 (25.38)
        1:17.81 (30.24)     1:42.82 (25.01)
  5 Wenger, Jacque   JR Michigan-B1       1:44.02    1:43.14 B       25  
                 22.09        47.57 (25.48)
        1:18.01 (30.44)     1:43.14 (25.13)
  6 Barr, Luke       JR Indiana-B1        1:43.45    1:43.20 B       24  
                 22.14        47.34 (25.20)
        1:17.60 (30.26)     1:43.20 (25.60)
  7 Morris, Christo  JR Wisconsin-B1      1:43.95    1:43.72 B       23  
                 22.73        49.01 (26.28)
        1:19.66 (30.65)     1:43.72 (24.06)
  8 Mark Torok, Dom  SO Wisconsin-B1      1:43.07    1:44.34 B       22  
                 22.63        48.68 (26.05)
        1:18.53 (29.85)     1:44.34 (25.81)

50 freestyle

The Badgers are back up to second on the back of Taiko Torepe-Ormsby, who defended his top seed from the morning by going 18.76 to win the 50 free comfortably. Bence Szabados of Michigan was second in 19.00, and Penn State’s Victor Baganha finished third.

Finlay Brooks of Indiana tied with Wisconsin’s Andrew Benson for fourth. Indiana finished ninth, 13th and 14th in the B final, not exactly maximizing return.

 Event 5  Men 50 Yard Freestyle
=========================================================================
     B1G Meet: ! 18.69  2/22/2018 Bowen Becker, Minnesota
                 18.82  A NCAA Qualifying
                 19.79  B NCAA Provisional
    Name           Year School            Prelims     Finals       Points 
=========================================================================
                            === A - Final ===                            
 
  1 Torepe-Ormsby,   SO Wisconsin-B1        19.15      18.76 A       32  
                  9.06         18.76 (9.70)
  2 Szabados, Bence  SR Michigan-B1         19.18      19.00 B       28  
                  9.23         19.00 (9.77)
  3 Baganha, Victor  JR Penn State-B1       19.37      19.14 B       27  
                  9.22         19.14 (9.92)
  4 Brooks, Finlay   JR Indiana-B1          19.41      19.37 B       25.5
                  9.22        19.37 (10.15)
  4 Benson, Andrew   SR Wisconsin-B1        19.58      19.37 B       25.5
                  9.27        19.37 (10.10)
  6 Baltes, Daniel   JR Ohio State-B1       19.60      19.45 B       24  
                  9.44        19.45 (10.01)
  7 Ray, Tyler       SO Michigan-B1         19.47      19.48 B       23  
                  9.25        19.48 (10.23)
  8 Wiegand, Ben     SO Wisconsin-B1        19.59      19.56 B       22  
                  9.39        19.56 (10.17)

1-meter diving

With a slew of American Olympic contenders queuing up for a Big Ten crown, Minnesota’s Yutong Wang crashed the part.

The freshman scored 408.25 points, rising from fifth in prelims to the gold medal. In the process, he usurped reigning Big Ten gold medalist Carson Tyler of Indiana, who took silver with a score of 405.50, and reigning NCAA champion Lyle Yost of Ohio State, the bronze winner in 399.20. Purdue’s Jordan Rzepka was fourth with Quinn Henninger of Indiana fifth.

The diving points occasioned another lead change, with Indiana rising to the lead and Ohio State into second.

Event 6  Men 1 mtr Diving
=========================================================================
     B1G Meet: ! 493.60  2/22/2018 Michael Hixon, Indiana
                 300.00  A NCAA Qualifying
    Name           Year School            Prelims     Finals       Points 
=========================================================================
                            === A - Final ===                            
 
  1 Wang, Yutong     FR Minnesota-B1       340.50     408.25 A       32  
  2 Tyler, Carson    JR Indiana-B1         381.00     405.50 A       28  
  3 Yost, Lyle       GR Ohio State-B1      395.95     399.20 A       27  
  4 Rzepka, Jordan   JR Purdue-B1          352.05     380.30 A       26  
  5 Henninger, Quen  JR Indiana-B1         371.10     375.60 A       25  
  6 Chaplin, Clayto  JR Ohio State-B1      330.05     370.80 A       24  
  7 Read, Tyler      FR Ohio State-B1      312.10     327.60 A       23  
  8 Sullivan, Kevin  SR Penn State-B1      328.60     300.00 A       22

400 medley relay

It’s the old standby for Indiana, possibly the strongest of its deep relay arsenal. The Hoosiers made quick work of the 400 medley relay, Brendan Burns, Josh Matheny, Tomer Frankel and Rafael Miroslaw going 3:01.61 to win by more than 1.5 seconds. It’s an NCAA A cut, within seven tenths of the 2022 meet record that this same foursome owns. It makes the Hoosiers 3-for-3 in relays.

Each of the first three swimmers put forth the fastest leg in the race in their respective stroke. Miroslaw’s 41.64 was third, thanks in part to Taiko Torepe-Ormsby of Wisconsin going 40.50, though it didn’t elevate the Badgers above sixth.

The relay points solidify Indiana’s lead after Day 2. Michigan is up to second thanks to its second-place relay, going 3:03.13 to book an A cut. Gal Groumi’s 44.20 and Bence Szabados’s 41.35 brought them home strong.

Penn State finished fourth in 3:05.06, a B cut, as was Minnesota’s fourth-place time. Ohio State tumbles to third in the team standings after finishing seventh.

 Event 7  Men 400 Yard Medley Relay
==================================================================================
     B1G Meet: ! 3:00.95  2/24/2022 Indiana, India
                          B Burns, J Matheny, T Frankel, R Miroslaw
                 3:04.96  A NCAA Qualifying
                 3:06.84  B NCAA Provisional
    School                           Seed     Finals       Points 
==================================================================================
  1 Indiana-B1  'A'               3:02.81    3:01.61 A       64  
     1) Burns, Brendan SR             2) Matheny, Joshua JR           
     3) Frankel, Tomer SR             4) Miroslaw, Rafael JR          
                 21.77        45.00 (45.00)
        1:09.11 (24.11)     1:36.09 (51.09)
        1:56.04 (19.95)     2:19.97 (43.88)
        2:39.42 (19.45)     3:01.61 (41.64)
  2 Michigan-B1  'A'              3:06.51    3:03.13 A       56  
     1) Wilkening, Jack SO            2) Fitzpatrick, Brendan JR      
     3) Cohen Groumi, Gal JR          4) Szabados, Bence SR           
                 21.77        45.44 (45.44)
        1:09.23 (23.79)     1:37.58 (52.14)
        1:58.10 (20.52)     2:21.78 (44.20)
        2:41.16 (19.38)     3:03.13 (41.35)
  3 Penn State-B1  'A'            3:08.67    3:05.06 B       54  
     1) Morley, Cooper SO             2) Lazzerini, Mariano SO        
     3) Bittner, Matthew SO           4) Baganha, Victor JR           
                 21.98        45.49 (45.49)
        1:09.77 (24.28)     1:36.93 (51.44)
        1:57.94 (21.01)     2:23.26 (46.33)
        2:42.80 (19.54)     3:05.06 (41.80)
  4 Minnesota-B1  'A'             3:10.45    3:05.34 B       52  
     1) Stowe, Casey SR               2) Rudd, Joseph JR              
     3) Harabagiu, Davide FR          4) Neverman, Kaiser SR          
                 22.46        47.23 (47.23)
        1:11.27 (24.04)     1:39.06 (51.83)
        1:59.36 (20.30)     2:23.65 (44.59)
        2:43.23 (19.58)     3:05.34 (41.69)
  5 Purdue-B1  'A'                3:07.00    3:06.94         50  
     1) Samuels, Braden JR            2) Witty, Andrew SR             
     3) King, Charles SR              4) Muhammad, Idris JR           
                 21.43        45.57 (45.57)
        1:09.22 (23.65)     1:37.85 (52.28)
        1:58.98 (21.13)     2:24.09 (46.24)
        2:44.07 (19.98)     3:06.94 (42.85)
  6 Wisconsin-B1  'A'             3:09.74    3:08.04         48  
     1) Welker, Nathan FR             2) Benson, Andrew SR            
     3) Mark Torok, Dominik SO        4) Torepe-Ormsby, Taiko SO      
                 22.16        46.41 (46.41)
        1:10.32 (23.91)     1:38.56 (52.15)
        1:59.96 (21.40)     2:27.54 (48.98)
        3:08.04 (40.50)     3:08.04 (40.50)
  7 Ohio State-B1  'A'            3:10.52    3:08.05         46  
     1) Jankovics, Tristan SO         2) Helmuth, Karl JR             
     3) Gustafson, Charles GR         4) Baltes, Daniel JR            
                 23.28        47.59 (47.59)
        1:11.51 (23.92)     1:40.03 (52.44)
        2:00.93 (20.90)     2:25.44 (45.41)
        2:45.63 (20.19)     3:08.05 (42.61)
  8 Northwestern-B1  'A'          3:07.16    3:08.66         44  
     1) Gerchik, David FR             2) Lu, Tyler JR                 
     3) Baltaytis, Aaron FR           4) Seymour, Stuart FR           
                 22.41        46.52 (46.52)
        1:11.71 (25.19)     1:40.10 (53.58)
        2:01.29 (21.19)     2:26.17 (46.07)
        2:46.38 (20.21)     3:08.66 (42.49)

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