Vlad Morozov Powers No. 3 USC to Conquest of No. 9 Stanford

PALO ALTO, California, February 9. BEHIND another pair of big wins from junior Vlad Morozov and double victories from sophomore Cristian Quintero and freshman Morten Klarskov, as well strong relays, the No. 3 USC men's swimming and diving team downed host No. 9 Stanford, 156-139, on Saturday in Palo Alto.

USC opened the meet with with a win in the 400y medley relay as the group of sophomore Luca Spinazzola, Klarskov, freshman Maclin Davis and Morozov touched first in 3:11.78 to the Cardinal's 3:11.94.

Quintero followed with an exciting win on the 1650y free. Riding Stanford's Drew Cosgarea's hip for most of the race, Quintero edged past him over the final 50 to win 15:15.53 to 15:15.63.

Junior Dimitri Colupaev followed with another tight victory in the 200y free, hitting the wall just ahead of the Cardinal's Thomas Stephens, 1:37.27 to 1:37.34. Trojan sophomore Chad Bobrosky took third (1:38.04).

USC finished 2-3-4 in the 100y back with Spinazzola (48.05), junior Chase Bloch (48.47) and senior Alex Lendrum (48.77). Klarskov then won the 100y breast in strong fashion with a 54.78 while Blake Cushing took third in 56.30.

Next, sophomore Dakota Hodgson (1:47.71) and senior Justin DiFederico (1:48.07) took 3-4 in the 200y fly.

Morozov then sprinted to a Stanford pool record in the 50y free in 19.33, winning by .77 in the splash and dash race.He broke Cal swimmer Nathan Adrian's three-year-old mark of 19.34. Meanwhile sophomore Jordan Gear led USC on 1-meter with a third-place (274.20). Gear later took third on 3-meter (313.20) as well.

Shortly after, Morozov won again, drubbing the field in the 100y free with a 43.07 while Colupaev took fourth in 44.53.

Lendrum led USC in the 200y back in third (1:45.42), a second out of first, before Klarskov doubled up with a win in the 200y breast (1:59.09).

Quintero struck again in the 500y free, taking the race in 4:28.45 while Hodgson claimed second in 4:29.48.

Davis next battled to a victory in the 100y fly in 47.78, edging Standord's Gary Umbach (48.07) while Bloch took fourth.

In the final individual event, Klarskov took second in the 200y IM with a 1:48.85, providing enough scoring — along with Davis' win in the 100y fly — to take some heat off the final relay.

USC went ahead and won the 200y free relay for good measure as Morozov, Colupaev, junior Jack Wagner and Quintero won in 1:19.46. Quintero held off Stanford's Andrew Saeta at the wall as the Cardinal touched in 1:19.49.

“The men came back from a disappointing loss at Cal to beat Stanford,” USC Coach Dave Salo said. “We had great leadership from captains Lendrum and Bloch to keep the men focused today. With Vlad throwing in some important racing the men came through with a big win. I am really proud of the guys for winning with spirit and experiencing how much fun it is to beat one of the best teams in the country.

“Maclin's win in the 100y fly late in the meet probably sealed it but our relays were outstanding in large part to Morozov. Cristian was also awesome in taking the 1650y and 500y free and then anchoring the 200y free relay. It was an incredible feat of athleticism.”

The above article is a press release submitted to Swimming World Magazine. It has been posted in its entirety without editing. Swimming World offers all outlets the chance to reach our audience by contacting us at Newsmaster@swimmingworldmagazine.com. However, Swimming World reserves the right to choose what material is posted.

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