SALT LAKE CITY – Utah will send its men’s and women’s swimming & diving teams to Denver this Friday for meets against the Pioneers. Diving will begin at 2 p.m. with the swimming portion of the meet beginning at 4 p.m.
“This will be another very difficult test for our team going against one of the premier teams in the region in Denver,’ said Utah head coach Joe Dykstra. “They are fast, deep, and well coached. We are going to have to be sharper than we’ve been recently to have a chance to win.”
UTAH NOTES
The men’s squad is currently ranked No. 26 nationally, according to collegeswimming.com. The squad has defeated UNLV (189.5-104.5) and took first at the Art Adamson Invitational. Last weekend, the Utes were defeated at BYU, 155-145.
During the meet, Josiah Purss broke the school record in the three-meter event. He scored a total of 453.75 points and took first in the event. Sterling Richards previously set the school record in 2005 (412.65). Purss finished second on the one-meter (379.80) while teammate Jacob Crayne took first (379.80).
The diving achievements highlighted a day that featured a number of first-place finishes. Jay Bolinger took first in the 1,000 free with a time of 9:41.62 and Calvin Rogers took second (9:51.07). Bence Kiraly captured both the 200 free (9:41.62) and the 500 free (4:32.11). He also took second in the 100 free.
Kristian Kron added to the total of wins by taking first in the 200 fly (1:49.69) and also tallied two second-place finishes in the 200 back (1:47.76) and the 200 IM (1:52.21).
While the men’s team faltered. the women’s squad defeated BYU this past weekend, 198-102. In total, the squad recorded 14 first-place finishes.
The relay team of Megan Kawaguchi, Julienne Tadena, Jenna Marsh and Gillian St. John started things off impressively by capturing the 200-medley relay with a time of 1:45.45. The 400 free relay team of Marsh, Dorien Butter, St. John and Jordan Anderson touched in at first with a time of 3:31.82 to close the day’s event.
Kawaguchi captured a pair of individual events, getting both the 100 back (57.27) and the 200 back (2:05.85). Marsh took first in the 100 fly (56.57) while Butter won the 200 free (1:54.97) and the 100 free (52.42).
Claiming the top two spots in the 1,000 free were Jordan Anderson (10:35.97) and Kat Wickham (10:41.32). Wickham also took first in the 500 free (5:09.48) with teammate Isabelle Kearns taking first in the 200 fly (2:07.13).
In diving, Amanda Casillas took first in both the one-meter (296.55) and the three-meter (311.10). Lauren Hall took second on the one-meter (262.85).
LAST MEETING
The Utes last took on Denver in Jan. 2015. The men came out on top, 178-120, but the women fell, 156-144.
The Ute men opened up the meet with a first place finish in the 400 medley relay as the team of Kristian Kron, Jack Burton, Alex Fernandes and Nick Soedel touched in with a time of 3:21.89. Soedel would later claim the first-place spot in the 200 free (1:38.63), as well as the 100 free (44.41).
Kron won three events during the meet; the 200 back (1:49.42), 100 back (50.62) and 400 IM (4:00.13).
In the 1,000 free, Bence Kiraly claimed second place with a time of 9:21.31 and Brandon Shreeve followed in third place (9:37.31). The duo would later go finish second and third respectively in the 500 free when Kiraly touched in 4:31.07 and Shreeve followed with a time of 4:37.92.
Fernandes took top honors in the 50 free with a time of 21.13 and was followed by Sean Bloore (21.74) then Alex Brown (21.88). Fernandes also claimed the top spot in the 100 fly with a time of 49.11.
Burton took first-place in the 200 breast (2:05.70) and was followed by Brandon Young (2:06.99) and Ganem Tebet (2:07.61).
On the women’s side, Stina Colleou took first in the 100 breast (1:05.12) and Brianna Francis was right behind her in second (1:05.36). Colleou later won the 200 breast event with a time of 2:19.46.
Petra Soininen took top honors in the 200 fly (2:03.77), while Maddie Jamora took first in the 50 free (23.83). Soininen later claimed second in the 100 fly with a time of 56.14.
The team of Megan Kawaguchi, Colleou, Soininen and Guiliana Gigliotti touched in second in the 400 medley relay with a time of 3:47.58 and the quartet of Dorien Butter, Jamora, Rhianna Williams and Gigliotti won the 200 free relay with a time of 1:35.34.
UTES IN THE PAC-12
(Italics Indicates NCAA B Time)
Men
Cole Avery
100 Back – 17th – 48.69
200 Back – 22nd – 1:48.18
400 IM – 16th – 3:56.04
Sean Bloore:
50 Free – 20th – 20.38
Jay Bolinger
1,000 Free – 16th – 9:27.82
500 Free – 24th – 4:28.92
1,000 Free – 15th – 9:27.82
1,650 Free – 11th – 15:21.23
400 IM – 25th – 3:59.03
Jack Burton
100 Breast – 7th – 53.93
200 Breast – 5th – 1:56.80 (19th NCAA)
Brandon Deckard
200 Back – 21st – 1:41.11
Evan Indahl
1,000 Free – 24th – 9:42.06
400 IM – 22nd – 3:56.86
Keanu Interone
100 Breast – 24th – 55.68
Bence Kiraly
200 Free – 8th – 1:36.06
500 Free – 1st – 4:16.79 (8th NCAA)
1,000 Free – 2nd – 9:07.93 (16th NCAA)
1,650 Free – 1st – 14:50.19 (7th NCAA)
200 Fly – 20th – 1:47.57
Kristian Kron
200 Free – 23rd – 1:38.04
500 Free – 3rd – 4:18.55 (23rd NCAA)
200 Back – 8th – 1:44.35
200 Fly – 17th – 1:47.02
400 IM – 6th – 3:46.77 (18th NCAA)
Peter Kotson
1,000 Free – 10th – 9:19.44
1,650 Free – 14th – 15:31.73
Luis Macias
200 Fly – 25th – 1:49.04
Daniel McArthur
100 Back – 7th – 47.62
200 Back – 6th – 1:43.15
200 IM – 13th – 1:46.95
Brendan Nguyen
400 IM – 24th – 3:58.08
Quillian Oak
100 Breast – 25th – 55.71
Calvin Rogers
1,650 Free – 17th – 15:44.08
Nolan Rogers
400 IM – 11th – 3:52.79
Brandon Shreeve
500 Free – 25th – 4:28.96
1,000 Free – 18th – 9:31.66
1,650 Free – 16th – 15:42.09
200 Back – 15th – 1:46.01
Ganem Tebet
200 Breast – 19th – 2:00.36
400 IM – 20th – 3:56.45
Paul Ungur
100 Back – 6th – 47.54
200 Back – 20th – 1:48.07
Women
Jordan Anderson
500 Free – 11th – 4:48.40
1,000 Free – 16th – 10:13.36
1,650 Free – 7th – 16:34.43
200 Fly – 18th – 2:00.08
400 IM – 6th – 4:14.86
Paolina Carnevale
1,650 Free – 22nd – 17:27.21
Stina Colleou
100 Breast – 8th – 1:01.47
200 Breast – 4th – 2:10.11 (19th NCAA)
Brianna Francis
200 Breast – 18th – 2:14.90
Megan Kawaguchi
100 Back – 18th – 53.82
200 Back – 19th – 1:59.62
Isabella Kearns
1,650 Free – 21st – 17:24.30
400 IM – 24th – 4:22.69
Maryssa McArthur
500 Free – 25th – 4:54.23
1,650 Free – 19th – 17:07.67
Maudee Miner
1,650 Free – 23rd – 17:32.71
Genevieve Robertson
100 Breast – 11th – 1:02.05
200 Breast – 9th – 2:12.21
Gillian St. John
50 Free – 23rd – 23.18
Maddie Velez
1,650 Free – 20th – 17:20.51
Kat Wickham
1,000 Free – 24th – 10:24.96
1,650 Free – 11th – 16:49.79
DENVER NOTES
The Denver men’s team is currently ranked No. 16, with the women ranked No. 28, according to collegeswimming.org. The women were defeated last week at Boise State and the men have been off since Jan. 16 when they beat BYU and lost to Minnesota.
NEXT TIME OUT
Following this meet, the divers will compete in the Air Force Diving Invitational on Feb. 2-3. The women return to the pool on Feb. 13 against Washington State and the men host USC on Feb. 20. Those represent the final home meets for the Ute seniors
Swimming news courtesy of Utah Swimming & Diving.
