{"id":640279,"date":"2026-03-28T09:36:56","date_gmt":"2026-03-28T16:36:56","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/?p=640279"},"modified":"2026-03-28T13:15:53","modified_gmt":"2026-03-28T20:15:53","slug":"ncaa-mens-championships-texas-successful-in-saturday-prelims-poised-to-pull-away","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.swimmingworldmagazine.com\/news\/ncaa-mens-championships-texas-successful-in-saturday-prelims-poised-to-pull-away\/","title":{"rendered":"NCAA Men’s Championships: Texas Successful in Saturday Prelims, Poised to Pull Away From Florida"},"content":{"rendered":"

NCAA Men’s Championships: Texas Successful in Saturday Prelims, Poised to Pull Away From Florida<\/strong><\/p>\n

Back-to-back wins Friday evening put Florida into the lead at the NCAA Men’s Championships.\u00a0Ahmed Hafnaoui<\/strong> and\u00a0Ahmed Jaouadi<\/strong> finished 1-2 in the 500 freestyle before\u00a0Josh Liendo<\/strong> grabbed first in the 50 free. That win would be short-lived, however, as Texas jumped back in front following 3-meter diving and the 400 medley relay. The advantage stood at 9.5 points entering the final day of competition.<\/p>\n

The Longhorns were under pressure entering Saturday morning, and the team delivered with the results needed in the qualifying heats. Texas placed three swimmers into championship finals as\u00a0Baylor Nelson<\/strong> and\u00a0Will Modglin<\/strong> are in the mix in the 200 IM while\u00a0Hubert Kos<\/strong> remains the huge title favorite in the 200 backstroke. But just as critically, Texas had six swimmers finish between ninth and 16th place. There are no consolation finals this year, but those swimmers still score.<\/p>\n

Campbell McKean<\/strong> and Nate Germonprez<\/strong> placed ninth and 14th, respectively, in the 200 IM.\u00a0Garrett Gould<\/strong> snuck into the 100 free scoring in 14th position.\u00a0Kyle Peck<\/strong> got 13th and Cooper Lucas<\/strong> 14th in the 200 butterfly before\u00a0Rex Maurer<\/strong> moved up to 11th in the 200 back. That’s an additional 25 points guaranteed to the Texas scorecard in the evening session in addition to the team’s A-final swims.<\/p>\n

Compare that with Florida, which has only two scoring swims Saturday.\u00a0Josh Liendo<\/strong> will be favored in the 100 free, and\u00a0Jonny Marshall<\/strong> goes in the 200 back final. Platform diving is still to be adjudicated, but it’s nearly impossible to see the Gators outscoring Texas or even coming close. The final day was always going to be a challenge with the team’s distance group finished for the meet, but these results essentially sealed the deal. Jesus Gonzalez<\/strong> secured the top seed in platform diving, but that will likely be too little to make a difference.<\/p>\n