{"id":582931,"date":"2024-04-02T08:59:29","date_gmt":"2024-04-02T15:59:29","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=582931"},"modified":"2024-04-08T11:18:34","modified_gmt":"2024-04-08T18:18:34","slug":"from-norway-to-towson-brian-benzings-silver-medal-strikes-blow-for-mid-majors","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/from-norway-to-towson-brian-benzings-silver-medal-strikes-blow-for-mid-majors\/","title":{"rendered":"From Norway to Towson, Brian Benzing’s NCAA Silver Medal Strikes Blow for Mid-Majors"},"content":{"rendered":"

From Norway to Towson, Brian Benzing’s Silver Medal Strikes Blow for Mid-Majors<\/strong><\/p>\n

Liam Bell<\/strong> set an American record and an NCAA record in the men\u2019s 100 breaststroke Friday night at the NCAA Championships. He did not set the record for most excited swimmer at the wall at IUPUI Natatorium in the championship final.<\/p>\n

That honor, decisively, went to silver medalist Brian Benzing<\/strong> of Towson, words that aren\u2019t strung together in quite that order too often.<\/p>\n

Benzing went 50.59, which was more than a second back of Bell\u2019s American record 49.53. But the Towson senior\u2019s explosion of emotion at the touch indicated elation beyond measure.<\/p>\n

\u201cI was just shocked,\u201d Benzing said afterward. \u201cI knew I had a chance to get on the podium. I just wanted a lane at night, so getting second was awesome. I just went into it and thought, hey if I choke and get eighth, I\u2019m still an All-American. It was awesome seeing the second (place) and seeing my time. \u2026 It was just like wow. I didn\u2019t know I had that in me.\u201d<\/p>\n