Swimcloud

Oakland in First, Second at Horizon League

Men's Team Scores 
1. Milwaukee 292 
2. Oakland 278 
3. Cleveland State 207 
4. Green Bay 201 
5. Wright State 146 
6. UIC 170 
7. Valparaiso 49

Women's Team Scores 
1. Oakland 297
2. Milwaukee 234 
3. Green Bay 227 
4. UIC 175 
5. Youngstown State 166 
6. Wright State 146 
7. Cleveland State 110 
8. Valparaiso 85

 

Oakland

Jorden Merrilees set an Oakland and Horizon League record in the men's 500 freestyle Thursday evening, as his time of 4:17.05 was one of three individual wins for the Golden Grizzlies during day two of the 2015 Horizon League Swimming and Diving Championships, hosted by the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee at the Walter Schroeder Aquatic Center.

After two days of action, the Oakland women's team is now in first place thanks to a 1-2-3-4 finish in the women's 200 IM final. The Golden Grizzlies own a 63-point lead over second-place Milwaukee, 297-234. For the men, Oakland trails Milwaukee by just 14 points, 292-278, to sit in second place.

"It was a great day; we had two really good sessions back to back," Oakland head coach Pete Hovland said. "The athletes are feeling good about themselves and where we are at as a team. We have four sessions of tough competition left, and they know they need to have intensity and passion in their swims from here on out."

Merrilees, who bested his previous Horizon League record with his swim Thursday night, won by over 12 seconds; his time improved is ranking nationally and has the junior among the top 25 in the nation and awaiting a possible berth to the NCAA Championship March 26-28. Seth Timmons added a fourth-place finish for Oakland in the 500 freestyle, touching in 4:30.72 for a personal best.

"A school record, a League record, and close to an 'A' cut, that was a great race for Jorden," Hovland said. "That may have been one of the best swims we have ever seen in that event." 

The women's 200 IM was all Oakland, as the Golden Grizzlies swept the top four places and added a sixth-place finish in the eight-swimmer A final. Patricia Aschan won with an NCAA "B" time of 2:01.45, which ranks fourth in Oakland history. Stella Pasalidou'ssecond-place time of 2:03.82 tied for sixth in team records, while Takara Martin improved her personal best with her third-place finish in 2:04.73. Megan Hunter added to the resounding team effort with a time of 2:05.13 for fourth place, and Rachel Waite rounded out Oakland's event scoring with her sixth-place time of 2:05.53.

"Those are dream come true scenarios," Hovland said. "The 200 IM has been a strength of us in the past, so we had the potential to do well. To have them all drop time, it was a huge event for us." 

Also posting an individual win for the Golden Grizzlies was Jeremiah Morren, who won the men's 50 freestyle in 20.17, which is good enough for an NCAA "B" qualification time. Morren was victorious from the second lane after placing fifth in the preliminary round Thursday morning.

"He really put together a great swim its a tribute to how hard he works," Hovland said.

In the men's 200 IM, in a race that featured four NCAA "B" cut times, Oakland's Tuomas Kiviluoma (1:47.43) and Aleksander Danielewski (1:49.02) finished second and fourth, respectively, to bolster the men's scoring efforts. Kiviluoma's time ranks second in program history, while Danielewski moved up to seventh-best in team records. Mario Rusnak added a seventh-place finish in 1:50.00.

The women jumped from their fifth-place spot with key scoring in the 50 free and 500 free. Nikki Flynn touched second in the 50 free with a time of 23.43, which ranks fourth in Oakland history. Teammate Holly Morren placed fifth with a time of 23.58, good for 7th in program records. Kyra Rietveld just missed her PR in the event, finishing in sixth with a time of 23.63.

In the 500 free, freshmen Cassie Misiewicz took sixth (4:59.20) and Arynn de Leeuw seventh (5:01.66) in the A final.

Sterling Fordham added a sixth-place finish in the men's 3-meter diving with a score of 269.45.

The Golden Grizzlies capped their night with first-place finishes in both 400 medley relay events. For the women, the team of Rietveld, Martin, Aschan and Morren touched in 3:42.66, good for second-best in team records and winning by three seconds. The men's quartet of Danielewski, John Schihl, Rusnak and Merrilees won with a time of 3:14.35, winning by one second and ranking fourth-best in program history.

Day three of the Horizon League Championship begins with preliminary rounds at 10:30 a.m. and finals slated for 7 p.m. Friday's events are the 400 IM, 100 butterfly, 200 freestyle, 100 breaststroke, 100 backstroke, the 800 freestyle relay along with women's 3-meter diving.

 

Wisconsin-Milwaukee Men

K.J. Heger, Nic Halverson and the 400 medley relay all broke school records as the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee men's swimming & diving team maintained its lead of the rest of the conference following two days of action at the Horizon League Championships at the Walter Schroeder Aquatic Center Thursday.

Milwaukee has an impressive 292 points after the midway point to lead all teams. Oakland sits second at 278, with Cleveland State third at 207 and Green Bay fourth at 201. Wright State (198), UIC (170) and Valparaiso (49) round out the scoring.

"Just records galore today on the guy's side," Milwaukee head coach Kyle Clements said. ""It's been an incredible day and a half here. What's even more amazing is that we have even more room to be faster. But that's not taking away from the accolades we've put up after a day and a half of swimming."

The Panthers started the day the same way they ended it – with a school record.

Senior K.J. Heger claimed his third-straight Horizon League title on the three-meter diving board with a school record score of 379.85. Heger is now just the second diver in league history to win the event three-straight times, last accomplished by David Shay of Xavier from 1987-89.

UWM placed two more atop the podium in the event as Andres Villa (280.95) took fourth, just ahead of freshman Marcel Harris (273.40) for fifth. Andy LaFleur also added important points for Milwaukee, taking 12th overall despite battling illness.

In the very next event, the Panthers broke another school record. This time it was N. Halverson, touching the wall at 4:29.69 in the 500 freestyle to break Zac Kraai's record that had stood since 2010. Halverson earned second-team all-league honors, finishing nearly a full second ahead of the next swimmer.

Kenny Stelpflug came in fifth with an outstanding time of 4:31.59, shaving a full two seconds off his previous lifetime best. Max Gatzke was right behind in sixth at 4:34.50, nearly eight seconds faster than his previous season best.

Senior Mike Lucchesi and sophomore Nick Menninga turned in two remarkable performances in the 50 free. Lucchesi came in fourth overall with a blazing time of 20.34 – the sixth-fastest time in the event in Milwaukee history. Menninga was right behind in fifth overall in 20.36 – the seventh-fastest time in Panther history. Junior Tanner Nimke also scored for UWM, taking 13th with a time of 20.88.

Continuing the trend of the night, Milwaukee closed out the second day of action with another school record. John Kangas, Taylor Wisdorf, Lucchesi and Menninga combined to turn in a 400 medley relay time of 3:16.63 – nearly a full second ahead of the previous record set back in 2011.

 

Wisconsin-Milwaukee Women

Anna Yontz broke the school's oldest record to headline another outstanding day in the pool for the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee women's swimming & diving team at the second day of the Horizon League Championships at Walter Schroeder Aquatic Center Thursday.

Through eight scored events, Milwaukee sits in second place with 234 points. Oakland leads the field with 297 points. Green Bay is third at 227, UIC fourth at 175 and Youngstown State fifth at 166. Wright State (146), Cleveland State (110) and Valparaiso (85) round out the scoring.

"It's been an incredible day and a half here," Milwaukee head coach Kyle Clements said. "What's even more amazing is that we have even more room to be faster. But that's not taking away from the accolades we've put up after a day and a half of swimming."

Yontz stole the headlines Thursday, breaking the school record and claiming an individual league crown in the 50 freestyle. The senior won the event for the second-straight year to successfully defend her title, posting a new school record along the way at 23.08. That tops Lindsey Caldwell's old mark of 23.14 set back in 2005.

Milwaukee wasn't done there, though. Newcomer Mandie Siehs came in third overall with a lifetime-best time of 23.20 – the third-fastest time ever posted by a Panther. Hannah Lucas also scored valuable points for Milwaukee, taking 13th in 24.11.

Sophomore Natalie Johnson just missed her second league title in as many days in Thursday's opening event. Johnson finished league runner-up in the 500 free with a season-best time of 4:52.50, just shy of the top spot.

In the 200 IM, freshman Sara Bentley made her first trip to the podium of her young career with a fifth-place finish. Bentley's time of 2:05.30 was a season best and tops on the team all year.

Freshman Sami Stelpflug won the B-final with an outstanding time of 2:05.74 – a full second off her previous best. Senior Sierra Townsend came in 11th at 2:06.70 and sophomore Kristin Zablocki was 13th at 2:08.77.

UWM broke another record in the final event of the night. In the 400 medley relay, Maddy Nelson, Lucas, Townsend and Siehs combined to take third overall with a season-best time of 3:46.76. Nelson's opening split of 55.78 broke her own freshman backstroke record set earlier this year

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