2023 Men’s Big Ten Championships: Day Four Finals Live Recap

2023 MEN’S BIG TEN SWIMMING & DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS 

• Wednesday, February 22 – Saturday, February 25, 2023
• Canham Natatorium, Ann Arbor, MI
• Defending Champions:
  • Men: Indiana (1x)
• Live Results
• Live Video
• Championship Central
• Fan Guide

Day 4 Finals Heat Sheet 

The final session of the 2023 Men’s Big Ten Championships is here. Tonight will begin with the fastest heat of the men’s 1650, followed by finals of the 200 back, 100 free, 200 breast, and 200 fly. There will then be finals of platform diving and the meet will conclude with timed finals of the 400 free relay.

The defending champion Indiana Hoosiers have put themselves in position to win this meet handily after a dominant performance this morning. In fact, all of Indiana’s scoring athletes who competed this morning ended up making finals. Considering their lead heading into this meet, Indiana is on their way to a second-straight title, barring anything crazy happening.

After winning the 200 back and 200 fly in a grueling double last year, Indiana’s Brendan Burns will look to repeat the feat tonight. He set himself up well this morning, finishing first in the 200 fly and second in the 200 back.

Minnesota’s Max McHugh is looking to defend his title in the 200 breast as well.

1650 FREESTYLE – TIMED FINALS

• Big Ten Championship Record: 14:29.25, Felix Auboeck (MICH) – 2014
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 14:37.31
• 2022 NCAA Invite Time: 14:55.21

RESULTS:

1. Charlie Clark (Ohio State) – 14:41.75
2. Bar Soloveychik (Minnesota) – 14:50.93
3. Warren Briggs (Indiana) – 14:56.97
4. Chris Nagy (Minnesota) – 14:57.63
5. Connor Hunt (Michigan) – 15:03.13
6. Alex Metzler (Ohio State) – 15:03.42
7. Yigit Aslan (Wisconsin) – 15:04.91
8. Mason Edmund (Ohio State) – 15:05.62

American distance star Charlie Clark won the men’s 1650 comfortably tonight in Ann Arbor, swimming to a season best of 14:41.75. While Clark’s personal best sits at 14:35.38 from last year’s NCAA Championships, the swim tonight marks his top time of the season by five seconds.

Minnesota’s Bar Soloveychik came in second with a 14:50.93, marking a season best for him as well. In terms of NCAAs, only Clark and Soloveychik’s times tonight will guarantee them invites. The rest, we’ll have to wait to see, though it is also very likely that fellow Golden Gopher Chris Nagy will make it as well. Nagy came in fourth tonight with a 14:57..63, but his season best is a 14:52.62, which shouldn’t have a problem making the cut.

The hosting Michigan Wolverines got a nice surprise out of Connor Hunt, who blew away his season best en route to posting the top time of the early heats this afternoon. The performance also marked a personal best for Hunt by three seconds.

Warren Briggs also posted a lifetime best, swimming a 14:56.97 for third. His previous best was a 14:58.03, set at last year’s Big Tens.

Ohio State flexed their distance muscles here, not only winning the event, but earning a sixth-place finish out of Alex Metzler and eighth out of Mason Edmund.

200 BACKSTROKE — FINALS

• NCAA Record: 1:35.73, Ryan Murphy (CAL) – 2016 NCAA Championships
• Big Ten Record: 1:37.58, Tyler Clary (MICH) — 2009 NCAA Championships
• Big Ten Championship Record: 1:38.89, Eric Ress (Indiana) – 2014 Big Ten Championships
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:39.13
• 2022 NCAA Invite Time: 1:40.92

RESULTS:

1. Brendan Burns (Indiana) – 1:38.22 (Championship Record)
2. Jake Newmark (Wisconsin) – 1:40.02
3. Wyatt Davis (Michigan) – 1:40.67
4. Wes Jekel (Wisconsin) – 1:41.09
5. Thomas Watkins (Ohio State) – 1:41.69
6. Kai Van Westering (Indiana) – 1:42.30
7. Dez Sachtjen (Minnesota) – 1:42.64
8. Tyler Lu (Northwestern) – 1:43.52

It was clear from the start how this race was going to go. Indiana senior Brendan Burns was out like a bullet, taking a lead he would only grow as the race progressed. Burns’ swim marked so many things. First, he set a new Big Ten Championship Record, shattering the old mark of 1:38.89. His swim also marks the top 200 back in the NCAA so far this season. It was also a personal best for Burns by over a second, as well as a new IU program record.

Keep in mind this is just the start for Burns, as he’ll also be chasing a victory in the 200 fly later in the session.

Behind Burns, Wisconsin’s Jake Newmark, the 200 and 500 free champion, finished second in 1:40.02. Wisconsin had the best 1-2 duo in the field, with Wes Jekel taking fourth at 1:41.09.

Michigan’s Wyatt Davis clocked another lifetime best, finishing third in 1:40.67.

100 FREESTYLE — FINALS

• NCAA Record: 39.90, Caeleb Dressel (FLOR) – 2018 NCAA Championships
• Big Ten Record: 40.83, Bowe Becker (Minnesota) — 2019 NCAA Championships
• Big Ten Championship Record: 41.43, Blake Pieroni (Indiana) – 2018 Big Ten Championships
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 41.64
• 2022 NCAA Invite Time: 42.34

RESULTS:

1. Ruslan Gaziev (Ohio State) – 41.38 (championship Record)
2. Van Mathias (Indiana) – 41.58
3. Rafael Miroslaw (Indiana) – 42.38
4. James Ward (Ohio State) – 42.39
5. Brady Samuels (Purdue) – 42.41
6. Bence Szabados (Michigan) – 42.67
7. Victor Baganha (Penn State) – 42.91
8. Gavin Wight (Indiana) – 42.92

Ohio State’s Ruslan Gaziev won the 100 free in a thriller tonight, breaking the Big Ten Championship Record in the process. Gaziev’s time marks a personal best by 0.18 seconds, coming in under the previous CR of 41.43, which Indiana alum Blake Pieroni ser back in 2018. The overall Big Ten Conference Record still sits at 40.83, which was swum by Minnestoa alum Bowe Becker in 2019.

With Gaziev’s win tonight, the Buckeyes keep the 100 free title in the family for another year. Last year, it was Hunter Armstrong, who has since turned pro, who won the event, while Gaziev came in second.

Indiana’s Van Mathias, the 50 free champion, came in a very close second, swimming a 41.58, but Gaziev actually slightly out-split Mathias on both 50s. It was still a great event for the Hoosiers, as Rafael Miroslaw came in third with a 42.38. They also saw Gavin Wight come in eighth.

200 BREASTSTROKE — FINALS

• NCAA Record: 1:47.91, Will Licon (TEX) – 2017 NCAA Championships
• Big Ten Record: 1:48.76, Max McHugh (Minnesota) – 2022 NCAA Championships
• Big Ten Championship Record: 1:49.45, Max McHugh (Minnesota) – 2022 Big Ten Championships
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:51.54
• 2022 NCAA Invite Time: 1:53.23

RESULTS:

1. Max McHugh (Minnesota) – 1:50.20
2. Josh Matheny (Indiana) – 1:51.23
3. Jassen Yep (Indiana) – 1:52.33
4. Max Reich (Indiana) – 1:52.75
5. Luke Barr (Indiana) – 1:54.37
6. Nick Sherman (Purdue) – 1:54.62
7. Marcus Mok (Northwestern) – 1:54.74
8. Ansel Froass (Michigan) – 1:55.12

Max McHugh pulled away from the field on the second 50, and didn’t look back, continuing to build his lead through the third 50 of the race. Though a few swimmers out-split McHugh on the final 50, it didn’t matter, as the lead he built was too much to be overcome.

With the swim, McHugh repeats as Big Ten champion in the event, and has now swept the breaststroke events for a second-straight Big Ten Championships. McHugh’s performance was also a season best, coming in at third in the NCAA this season.

Behind McHugh, Indiana put on a show in what is historically one of their best events. The Hoosiers went 2-3-4-5 in the event, with all four swimmers also improving on their prelims times. Josh Matheny led the way, clocking a 1:51.23, which clips his season best of 1:51.68.

Behind Matheny was Jassen Yep, swimming a new personal best of 1:52.33. Max Reich was next in, posting a 1:52.75.  Reich has already been 1:52.35 this season, which stands as his lifetime best in the event. Luke Barr came in clutch for Indiana as well, getting the touch to take fifth in 1:54.37.

200 BUTTERFLY — FINALS

• NCAA Record: 1:37.35, Jack Conger (TEX) – 2017 NCAA Championships
• Big Ten Record: 1:38.71, Brendan Burns (Indiana) – 2022 NCAA Championships
• Big Ten Championship Record: 1:39.22, Brendan Burns (Indiana) – 2021 Big Ten Championships
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:40.20
• 2022 NCAA Invite Time: 1:42.42

RESULTS:

1. Brendan Burns (Indiana) – 1:39.51
2. Gal Groumi (Michigan) – 1:40.21
3. Tomer Frankel (Indiana) – 1:40.97
4. Ben Miller (Northwestern) – 1:41.43
5. Dominik Mark Torok (Wisconsin) – 1:42.58
6. Chachi Gustafson (Ohio State) – 1:43.21
7. Constantin Bensch (Wisconsin) – 1:43.23
8. Kaiser Neverman (Minnesota) – 1:45.50

Unlike the 200 back, it wasn’t clear from the beginning that Brendan Burns would win this race, however, by the 150 turn, we knew what was going to happen. Using some shockingly great underwaters, Burns took the lead over 100 fly champion Gal Groumi and his Indiana teammate Tomer Frankel, speeding to victory in 1:39.51.

The swim comes in just off his Championship Record of 1:39.22, which he set last year. Additionally, Burns now leads the NCAA in the 200 fly this season.

Groumi came in second, swimming a 1:40.21, which marks a new personal best for the Michigan sophomore.

Frankel was third, swimming a 1:40.97, while Northwestern’s Ben Miller had a huge swim of 1:41.43 for fourth. That performance will likely earn Miller an invite to NCAAs next month.

PLATFORM DIVING – FINALS

RESULTS:

1. Carson Tyler (Indiana) – 451.65
2. Quinn Henninger (Indiana) – 425.10
3. Andrew Capobianco (Indiana) – 425.10
4. Clay Chaplin (Ohio State) – 404.05
5. Max Weinrich (Indiana) – 388.55
6. Lyle Yost (Ohio State) – 381.15
7. Jordan Rzepka (Purdue) – 378.75
8. Jack Matthews (Ohio State) – 339.15

The platform final tonight was truly a display of dominance by Indiana. The Hoosiers went 1-2-3 in the event, led by Carson Tyler. Quinn Henninger came in second and defending champion Andrew Capobianco came in third. Indiana also picked up a fifth-place finish out of Max Weinrich.

400 FREESTYLE RELAY – TIMED FINALS

• Big Ten Championship Record: 2:47.16, Ohio State – 2022
• NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 2:50.52
• NCAA ‘B’ cut: 2:52.44

RESULTS:

1. Indiana – 2:48.11
2. Michigan – 2:49.44
3. Wisconsin – 2:51.47
4. Purdue – 2:51.65
5. Minnesota – 2:53.97
6. Penn State – 2:55.39
7. Northwestern – 2:56.71
8. Ohio State – DQ

Indiana sent the meet out with a bang, winning the 400 free relay to cap of an excellent weekend by the Hoosiers. Van Mathias (41.96), Gavin Wight (42.35), Tomer Frankel (42.12), and Rafael Miroslaw (41.68) combined for a 2:48.11, securing the win.

Ohio State finished first in 2:47.96, but was disqualified due to an early take-off swimmer #3. They sat behind the Hoosiers for the entire race, but a heroic 40.78 anchor from Ruslan Gaziev pushed them over the top, though it was ultimately a moot point.

With the disqualification, Michigan finished in second, clocking a 2:49.44. The Wolverines were led by a 42.03 split on the third leg from Nikola Acin.

FINAL TEAM SCORES

1. Indiana – 1595.5
2. Ohio State – 1290.5
3. Michigan – 1163
4. Wisconsin – 1014.5
5. Minnesota – 785
6. Purdue – 704.5
7. Northwestern – 618
8. Penn State – 577