2024 MEN’S PAC-12 CHAMPIONSHIPS
- Dates: Wednesday, March 6 – Saturday, March 9
- Location: Weyerhaeuser King County Aquatic Center, Federal Way, WA
- Defending champions: Arizona State (1x)
- Live Results
- Live Video (Pac-12 Network)
- Championship Central
- Fan Guide Preview
- Day 1 Finals Recap
- Day 2 Prelims Recap
The day 2 finals session of the 2024 Men’s Pac-12 Championship is about to kick off in Federal Way. Based on how the swims were this morning, this should be a great, albeit short, finals session, and we’ll probably see multiple records broken. Tonight’s session will feature finals of the 500 free, 200 IM, and 50 free, and the session will concluded with timed finals of the 200 free relay.
TEAM SCORES (AFTER DAY ONE)
- Diving, which took place last week, is factored into the day one scores.
- USC — 183 points
- Cal — 175 points
- Arizona — 154 points
- Arizona State — 150 points
- Stanford — 106 points
- Utah — 75 points
The 500 free ought to be a great race. This morning, Arizona State’s Zalan Sarkany led the field with a small season best time performance. However, all eyes will likely be on Leon Marchand, who holds the Pac-12 record in the event with a 4:07.81 from last season. Either way, the championship record of 4:09.49 feels all but guaranteed to go down.
ASU’s Owen McDonald led the field in the 200 IM this morning, swimming a new personal best and going under 1:41 for the first time in his career. Hubert Kos went 1:41 this morning but has already been under 1:40 this season, so we’ll see just how fast he swims tonight.
The 50 free saw Sun Devil freshman Ilya Kharun clock a new career best of 18.82 this morning. That, along with fellow Sun Devil Jack Dolan also going under 19 this morning, ASU’s Jonny Kulow and Arizona’s Tommy Palmer splitting 18.2 and 18.3 respectively on the medley relays last night, makes it feel like the championship record of 18.80 is probably going to get broken.
MEN’S 500 FREESTYLE – FINALS
NCAA Record: 4:06.32 – Kieran Smith, Florida (2020)Pac-12 Record: 4:07.81 – Leon Marchand, Arizona State (2023)Pac-12 Championship Record: 4:09.49, Trenton Julian, Cal (2021)- NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 4:10.74
TOP 8:
- Leon Marchand (ASU) – 4:06.18 (NCAA RECORD)
- Zalan Sarkany (ASU) – 4:09.19
- Rex Maurer (STAN) – 4:12.58
- Daniel Matheson (ASU) – 4:14.81
- Julian Hill (ASU) – 4:15.26
- Tyler Kopp (CAL) – 4:15.31
- Henry McFadden (STAN) – 4:18.35
- Preston Forst (STAN) – 4:20.93
As expected, the session started out with a bang. Not only did Arizona State junior Leon Marchand break his own Pac-12 record in the 500 free, he set a new NCAA record tonight, speeding to a 4:06.18. With the swim, Marchand clipped the previous NCAA record of 4:06.32, which Kieran Smith set back in 2020. Now the fastest 500 freestyler in history, Marchand got out to a stunningly fast start tonight. He was 1:35.85 at the 200, and 2:01.08 at the 250. That means through the first half of the race, Marchand was on pace for a 4:02.16. His final 100 was his slowest, but he still split 50.52 coming home.
ASU sophomore Zalan Sarkany was phenomenal, blowing away his career best of 4:12.28, which he had set this morning. Sarkany ripped a 4:09.19, which was also under the previous championship record of 4:09.49 and is under the NCAA ‘A’ cut of 4:10.74.
Stanford freshman Rex Maurer was much faster than his 4:15.62 from this morning, taking 3rd in 4:12.48.
Notably, Cal freshman Keaton Jones was incredible in the ‘B’ final, winning his heat with a huge new career best of 4:13.73. Jones went 4:19.28 this morning and held a personal best of 4:15.54 from December of 2022. Moreover, Jones’ time would have been fast enough for 4th in the ‘A’ final tonight.
USC freshman Krzysztof Chmielewski was also great in the ‘B’ final, coming in 2nd (10th overall) with a 4:14.00. The swim was just off Chmielewski’s season and career best of 4:13.84.
MEN’S 200 INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY – FINALS
- NCAA Record: 1:36.34 – Leon Marchand, Arizona State (2023)
- Pac-12 Record: 1:36.34 – Leon Marchand, Arizona State (2023)
- Pac-12 Championship Record: 1:37.81 – Leon Marchand, Arizona State (2023)
- NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:41.03
TOP 8:
- Hubert Kos (ASU) – 1:38.77
- Owen McDonald (ASU) – 1:39.35
- David Schlicht (ASU) – 1:41.68
- Rick Mihm (STAN) – 1:42.10
- Cale Martter (ASU) – 1:42.48
- Gibson Holmes (STAN) – 1:43.40
- Sean Swift (CAL) – 1:43.74
- Luke Maurer (STAN) – 1:45.47
Arizona State has come out of the gates swinging tonight. After Marchand’s NCAA record in the 500 free, Sun Devil sophomore Hubert Kos ripped a new career best of 1:38.77 to win the 200 IM. While the time still falls about a second short of Marchand’s championship record of 1:37.81, it was Kos’ first time under 1:39 in the event. With the performance, Kos moves up to 6th all-time in the 200 IM. Marchand is the only swimmer to have gone under 1:38 in the event, holding the NCAA record at 1:36.34.
Kos was out like a bullet tonight, splitting 20.42 on fly and 24.11 on back for a stunning 44.53 on the opening 100. A very strong 29.62 on breast and 24.62 on free put Kos into the finish 1st.
Fellow ASU sophomore Owen McDonald had the swim of his life as well. After throwing down a huge new career best of 1:40.57 this morning, McDonald blew right threw the 1:40 barrier, becoming the 16th swimmer ever to break that mark. He touched 2nd in 1:39.35, which now ties him for 9th all-time in the event. McDonald was out nearly a second slower than Kos on the 1st 100, but a huge 23.99 on the final 50 put him right back in the race.
It was a 1-2-3 punch for the Sun Devils, as senior David Schlicht came in 3rd with a 1:41.68. He was just off his career best of 1:41.50, which he swam at NCAAs last year. Schlicht was incredible on the breaststroke leg of the race, splitting 28.92 on that 50. Sun Devil sophomore Cale Martter popped a new career best as well, finishing 5th with a 1:42.28.
Stanford’s Rick Mihm came in 4th tonight with a 1:42.10. With that swim, he took half a second off his previous career best of 1:42.63, which was swum at last year’s Pac-12s.
Stanford junior Ron Polosnky was far faster than the 1:43.98 he swam this morning, winning the ‘B’ final decisively in 1:41.25. That time marks a season best for Polonsky by nearly a second, as he’s previously been as fast as 1:42.10 this year. Polosnky is one of the top IMers in the NCAA currently, holding a career best of 1:39.96, which makes him 16th all-time in the event. Additionally, his swim tonight would have been good for 3rd in the ‘A’ final.
MEN’S 50 FREESTYLE – FINALS
- NCAA Record: 17.63 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018)
- Pac-12 Record: 18.27 – Bjorn Seeliger, California (2022)
Pac-12 Championship Record: 18.80 – Brad Tandy, Arizona (2014)- NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 18.82
TOP 8:
- Jack Dolan (ASU) – 18.61 (CHAMPIONSHIP RECORD)
- Ilya Kharun (ASU) – 18.84
- Jonny Kulow (ASU) – 18.92
- Tommy Palmer (ARIZ) – 19.08
- Jonathan Tan (STAN) – 19.40
- Artem Selin (USC) – 19.41
- Cam Peel (ASU) – 19.43
- Patrick Sammon (ASU) – 19.55
Arizona State just keeps on rolling. With the 200 free relay up next, the Sun Devils just had 3 guys go under 19 seconds tonight. It was Jack Dolan that won the race tonight, blasting a new career best of 18.61. Not only does that swim mark a massive improvement over Dolan’s previous best of 18.86, he became the swimmer who finally took down the Pac-12 Championship record in the event, which Arizona’s Brad Tandy had held with an 18.80 since 2014. After 10 years and tons of great sprinters who have come through the conference, the record was finally broken tonight.
ASU freshman Ilya Kharun clocked an 18.84 for 2nd tonight. That swim was just 0.02 seconds off the 18.82 Kharun swam this morning, which is his career best. Sun Devil sophomore Jonny Kulow came in 3rd tonight with an 18.92, marking his first time under 19 seconds in the event.
Arizona’s Tommy Palmer came in 4th tonight, throwing down a huge new career best of 19.08. Palmer’s previous career best was a 19.29, which he swam in the fall. Though it was off the NCAA ‘A’ cut, Palmer’s swim tonight will likely be fast enough to earn him an invite to NCAAs.
MEN’S 200 FREESTYLE RELAY – FINALS
- NCAA Record: 1:13.35 – Florida, 2023
- Pac-12 Record: 1:13.82 – Cal, 2023
Pac-12 Championship Record: 1:15.00 – Cal, 2022- NCAA ‘A’ Cut: 1:16.80
RESULTS:
- Arizona State (Peel, Dolan, Kharun, Kulow) – 1:14.59 (CHAMPIONSHIP RECORD)
- Stanford (Tan, Minakov, Gu, Voss) – 1:15.68
- Arizona (Palmer, Miller, Donovan, Daleiden) – 1:15.97
- California (Hanson, Jones, Crews, Hatton) – 1:16.84
- USC (Selin, Parker, Syrkin, Makrygiannis) – 1:18.00
- Utah (Woodall, Horner, Van Brocklin, Stachelek) – 1:19.20
Arizona State made it a clean sweep of the night, winning the 200 free relay by over a second. The Sun Devils’ time of 1:14.59 marks a new Pac-12 Championship record in the event, coming in well under the previous record of 1:15.00, set by Cal at the 2022 Pac-12s.
Cam Peel led the team off in 19.23, which was considerably faster than he went in the final of the 50 free (19.43) shortly before the relay. 50 free champion Jack Dolan split 18.35 on the 2nd leg, while runner-up Ilya Kharun was 18.56 on the 3rd leg. Jonny Kulow, who came in 3rd in the 50 free, anchored the ASU team in 18.45. Peel’s 19.23 lead-off comes in just 0.01 seconds off his career best in the event, which was set at last year’s Big Ten Championships, when he was still at Michigan.
The Stanford team of Jonathan Tan (19.31), Andrei Minakov (18.80), Jack Donovan (18.89), and Avery Voss (18.75) came in 2nd with a 1:15.68, a new season best for the Cardinal.
Arizona picked up an ‘A’ cut, taking 3rd in 1:15.97. Tommy Palmer (19.10), Seth Miller (18.96), Jack Donovan (18.89), and Ralph Daleiden (19.02) teamed up to make it happen.
TEAM SCORES (AFTER DAY TWO)
- Arizona State – 401
- Stanford – 304.5
- Cal – 237
- Arizona – 224.5
- USC – 221
- Utah – 111
Fine effort by Leon, but I was substantially more impressed with Sarkany’s swim.
Leon improved 1.63 at a Conference Championship over a dual meet performance a year ago.
Sarkany couldn’t break 4:16 last year, meeting that benchmark both at Pac-12s and NCAAs last year, where he finished 29th.
This year he will go into NCAAs seeded either #1 or #2, depending on Leon’s event choice.
A fun event to watch today will be heat one of the 400 IM, where Sarkany (PB 3:44.56 from last year’s NCAA) is in an outside lane base on a N.T. entry as he’s not yet swum it this year. Could be interesting.
If he matches his improvement in the 500, he will be around 3:37 in finals, which is maybe a bit unlikely.
Amazing Léon… After the im, the breaststroke, the fly, he has now improved his freestyle a lot, what could that mean for the 400m freestyle long course, without the advantage of his underwaters? Maybe a big surprise in Paris, i don’t know if it’s possible… What do you think ?
I think the 4free is way down on the list. Probably not even on it.
Apart from the standard being very high to final/medal, the underwaters (or lack of) are a game changer.
His 500 is quite UW reliant. Which does not take away how amazing this swim was of course.
To put it in context, Sarkany looked like he had about the same over water speed as Marchand but barely any UWs, and his current best in LCM is a 3:47. So I think with a full taper Marchand’s LC best is around 3:44-3:45, which could final but not medal, and he really has no reason to do it before the 400IM.
I firmly believe that Leon Marchand could own the NCAA record in all 5 200s, 400 IM, 500 free, 100 breast, MAYBE 100 back, and possibly even the 100 free. He is a once in a lifetime talent.
he’s not going sub 43.3 in 100 back, sub 40 in 100 free, or 1:35 in 2 back
Above the water, he’s just not a long axis sprint guy
Buddy, he opened his first 100 in the 200IM in a 44 flat with a 22.9 backstroke split. He has a solid shot at luca’s 43.3. Luca was pretty much at 15 for all his underwaters as well, what makes u think marchand cant do the same? He might get close on the 200 back as well–he’s been 1:39 point, coming off of a 200 fly going another 1:39. You’re right about the 100 free tho… so far
I doubt he could go 43.3 either but last year his back split in the IM was 22.9. I don’t think anyone other than Vaziaos has split sub 24 (I think he was 23.8). I think he’d be closer than you think.
He obviously can stay UW, so it would be interesting to see him do a 200 back.
Sub 40, not even close.
Leon’s ASU team mate Hubert Kos split 20.42 in the back part of the 200IM with a 44.53 at half, while winning the 200 IM in 1.38.77 Thursday night at the PAC12’s. Last year Hubi did 46.56 and 1:42.37 which is an almost a 4 second improvement of his PAC12 times from 2023
That 20.42 is his butterfly split, the backstroke was 24.1. That 20.4 would be an incredibly fast 50 backstroke flat start, but downright impossible as a split.
You’re right – he wouldn’t go 1:35 in the 2 back, because he would 1:34 instead.
I’ll give you the 100 freestyle, I’m not so sure about the backstrokes… Urlando wasn’t really on the radar as the guy to go that fast either, I suspect Leon could also throw down the gauntlet thanks to underwater prowess, it’s not like his backstroke is a major weakness at all in LCM either…
Leon has gone 44s in the 100 back in dual meets
Hot take
100% convinced that he could take down any NCAA record he doesn’t already have if he wanted to, barring the 50 and the 1650. But even those I think he could get if he trained half a season for them, which he shouldn’t, but still
Really no reason for Leon to swim back at NCAAs. ASU has 200 back world champion Hubert Kos to take care of that. While he better long course meters than short course yards his turns and underwaters have improved greatly this year which has improved his SCY times.
All the 200s, 4IM, 5free, and also the 100s of breast and back and maybeeeee fly. So in other words everything except sprint free and the mile and maybe 1 fly.
If you don’t think he could break the backstroke records then you haven’t thought hard enough about what a 22.2 split in the backstroke leg of a 2IM means.
Owen McDonald. Wow. ASU now with 3 guys under 1:40 in the 200 IM, almost 3 under 1:39. This team is ridiculous.
Cal might be 5th at NCAA’s
Name the other 3 teams who will finish ahead of them.
ASU, NC State, Florida, and mayyybe Tennessee have a shot. Personally I have Cal coming in 3rd in the 4×50
ASU, Florida, and possibly Indiana and NC State regardless of Cal missing some of their top guys. Cal men have not been as sharp as their women this year.
Buddy, you’re delusional. Go check the pac 12 record 2 free relay. All 4 of those swimmers are still on the team, just didn’t swim it. Pac 12 is obviously not a priority for cal. They will be top 2 this year. As far as the women, yes they may have had a good pac 12, but think about the talent level compared to the rest of the country.
Not saying Cal doesnt still have talent. Just that there are a lot of teams who seem sharper this year and just as much talent.
Based on their performance without their 5 best swimmers?
Impressive split from Roman Jones
Good to see both young Joneses having a good first full day of racing.
The camera work on that relay was rough. Please stop randomly cutting to super close shots in a sprint race and back out again multiple times per lap.
I know. Honestly they shouldn’t be doing any of that in short course, period.
whats the likelihood of asu winning every single relay at nationals?
Low, the possibility no other team can upset in any of the 5 is highly unlikely.
I mean, this championship record is still nowhere near the NCAA and Pac 12 records from just a year ago, so maybe not.
They are probably favourites in all other relays though (except possibly the 4×100 free).