2020 ACC Men’s Championships: Day 2 Prelims Live Recap

2020 ACC MEN’S SWIMMING AND DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

• When: Wednesday, February 26th to Saturday, February 29th Prelims 10:00 am | Finals 6:00 pm (1650 prelims Saturday at 4:00 pm)
• Where: Greensboro Aquatic Center, Greensboro, North Carolina (Eastern Time Zone)
• Defending Champion: North Carolina State University (NC State) (29x, 5th-straight) (results)
• Streaming: ACC Network
  • Day 2 Finals
  • Day 3 Finals
  • Day 4 Finals
• Championship Central: Here
• Detailed Timeline: Here
• Psych Sheets: Here
• Live Results
• Day 2 (Thursday AM) Prelims Heat Sheets

The first full day of the 2020 ACC men’s championships gets underway this morning in Greensboro with only three events.

In the first event, the 500 free, defending champion Eric Knowles of NC State will be swimming in the fifth heat. Zach Yeadon is of Notre Dame is the top seed, leading what should be a strong distance crew for the Fighting Irish. This will be a fairly new-looking A-final this year, as only four of last year’s top eight swimmers return.

Georgia Tech junior Caio Pumputis is both the defending champion and the top seed in the 200 IM. Last year, he was over two seconds faster than the next-fastest returner, Louisville junior Daniel Sos, who sits second on the psych sheet.

The 50 free could be the race of the day. Pitt’s Blaise Vera and NC State’s Nyls Korstanje sit the at top of the psych sheet; Vera has been 19.10 this season, while Korstanje has been 19.11. Last year, Korstanje finished 4th in the A-final, just 0.01s ahead of Vera. But don’t miss Louisville junior Andrej Barna. He finished 2nd in this race last year, but will be swimming in the very first heat this morning after missing much of the season and getting seeded without a 50 free time.

500 Freestyle – Prelims

• ACC championship record – 4:10.00, Matt McLean (Virginia), 2010
• ACC record – 4:09.13, Anton Ipsen (NC State), 2018
• 2019 champion – Erick Knowles (NC State), 4:12.13

Top 8:

1. Zach Yeadon (Notre Dame) – 4:14.03
2. Ross Dant (NC State) – 4:14.57
3. Jack Hoagland (Notre Dame) – 4:14.58
4. Eric Knowles (NC State) – 4:15.26
5. Jack Walker (Virginia) – 4:16.89
6. Antani Ivanov (Virginia Tech) – 4:17.52
7. Dimitrios Dimitriou (North Carolina) – 4:17.77
8. Sadler McKeen (Notre Dame) – 4:18.06

Notre Dame’s distance crew has been impressing all season, and they’ve carried that momentum into this morning’s prelims session, as they put three men into the A-final of this event.

Junior Zach Yeadon led the Fighting Irish – and everyone else – with a 4:14.03 swim this morning. That’s over two seconds better than his prelims time here last year, where he ultimately finished 6th. Teammate and freshman Jack Hoagland put up the 3rd-fastest time of the morning with a 4:14.58. That’s a new lifetime best for him by over two seconds, and he’s now over eight seconds faster than he was coming into college. Junior Sadler McKeen also made the top eight with a 4:18.06; he finished 10th in this event last year.

NC State got two of the top four seeds. Like Hoagland, freshman Ross Dant lopped a good chunk of time off of his lifetime best, dropping from 4:17.16 to 4:14.57, to take the #2 seed. Defending champion Eric Knowles went 4:15.26 for the 4th-fastest time this morning; that’s about a second and a half slower than he went he prelims last year.

Three other schools each put one swimmer into the top eight. UVA freshman Jack Walker qualified 5th with a time of 4:16.89. He’s been 4:15-low twice, both in high school and earlier this year at the UT Invite. Virginia Tech sophomore Antani Ivanov hit a new lifetime best with a 4:17.52 this morning; last year he finished 12th here with a 4:18.22, his previous lifetime best. UNC’s Dimitrios Dimitriou also made the A-final with a 4:17.77. Last year, he didn’t make it out of prelims, finishing 32nd overall.

200 IM – Prelims

• ACC championship record – 1:41.24, Andreas Vazaois (NC State), 2017
• ACC record – 1:39.35, Andreas Vazaois (NC State), 2019
• 2019 champion – Caio Pumputis (Georgia Tech), 1:41.28

Top 8:

1. Evgenii Somov (Louisville) – 1:43.48
2. Ted Schubert (Virginia) – 1:43.68
3. Daniel Sos (Louisville) – 1:43.70
4. Caio Pumputis (Georgia Tech) – 1:44.67
5. Erge Gezmis (NC State) – 1:44.85
6. Samy Helmbacher (Pitt) – 1:44.92
7. Casey Storch (Virginia) – 1:45.08
8. Samuel Tornqvist (Virginia Tech) – 1:45.29

Louisville’s Evgenii Somov led this morning’s prelims with a new lifetime best of 1:43.48, over a second and a half drop from his previous best of 1:45.02 from the 2018 ACCs. Somov finished 18th last year. Teammate Daniel Sos also made the A-final, putting up the 3rd-fastest mark of the morning with a 1:43.70. Sos finished 4th last year.

UVA also put two men into the top. Ted Schubert had the 2nd-fastest time of the morning with a 1:43.68, just off his lifetime best. Schubert took 6th last year. Teammate Casey Storch took 7th this morning with a 1:45.08; that’s about a second and a half faster than his prelims time from last year, where he ultimately won the C-final with a 1:470.

Defending champion Caio Pumputis cruised to the #4 seed this morning with a 1:44.67. Last year, that time would’ve meant he was out of the A-final, but look for him to drop a good chunk of time tonight. NC States’s Erge Gezmis, swimming in his first ACCs after transferring from Florida, knocked nearly four seconds off of his lifetime best this morning, taking 5th with a 1:44.85. Pitt’s Samy Helmbacher (1:44.92) will swim into tonight’s A-final after winning the B-final last year, and Virginia Tech’s Samuel Tornqvist (1:45.29) once again made the top eight; he finished 5th last year.

50 Freestyle – Prelims

• ACC championship record – 18.68, Ryan Held (NC State), 2018
• ACC record – 18.56, Ryan Held (NC State), 2017
• 2019 champion – Will Pisani (FSU), 19.21

Top 8:

1. Nyls Korstanje (NC State) – 19.07
2. Mihalis Deliyiannis (Louisville) – 19.25
3. Blaise Vera (Pitt) / Tommy Hallock (Virginia Tech)- 19.32
4. (tie)
5. Andrej Barna (Louisville) – 19.43
6. Peter Varjasi (Florida State) / Abdelrahman Sameh (Louisville)- 19.52
7. (tie)
8. Ryan Baker (Virginia) – 19.56

NC State sophomore Nyls Korstanje came within 0.03s of his lifetime best this morning, taking the top seed for tonight with a 19.07. He’ll be the only Wolfpack swimmer in the top 8, although the program known traditionally as a sprint powerhouse did put three men into the B-final.

The Louisville Cardinals, though, will have three men swimming in the A-final tonight after only having a single swimmer score at all in this event last year. Mihalis Deliyiannis led the Cards with a new lifetime best of 19.25. Andrej Barna, last year’s runner up, went 19.43 this morning for the 5th-fastest time, and Abdelrahman Sameh went 19.52 to tie for the #6 seed.

Pitt Blaise Vera and Virginia Tech’s Tommy Hallock tied for the #3 seed, both swimming 19.32. Vera came into today with a 19.10, while that’s a new lifetime best for Hallock by two-tenths of a second. Hallock turned heads last night with a 18-mid anchor leg on the medley relay that was the fastest legal split in the field.

Florida State’s Peter Varjasi (19.52) and Virginia’s Ryan Baker (19.56) round out the top eight.