Nov. 23, 2014
COLUMBUS, Ohio -- A competitive three days of competition came to an end at the Ohio State Invitational for the Wisconsin swimming and diving program, as the men's team solidified its second-place finish and the women's team came in third place on the final day of events Sunday.
“We had a terrific meet,” UW head coach Whitney Hite said. “For where we are in the season and with how little rest we had, basically just having a normal week and throwing on some fast suits, we performed very well. I’m really pleased with where we are with the team right now.”
Wisconsin concluded with a strong showing in the 1650-yard freestyle, as distance specialists Jenny Holtzen and Matt Hutchins each earned NCAA 'B' cuts. Holtzen, a junior out of Fayetteville, Arkansas, placed fourth (16:20.43) and recorded a new personal best. Sophomore and Christchurch, New Zealand, native Matt Hutchins won the event with a time of 15:05.25, the fourth-fastest time in the NCAA this season.
“Ivy Martin was her typical, spectacular self. Jenny Holtzen was terrific and had a really great mile and 500, so she’s doing very well. Aja Van Hout was really good,” Hite said. “I could really continue to go down the list. We were good from top to bottom, but those three were very good.”
In the 200-yard backstroke, Drew teDuits won the event with a time of 1:41.96, an NCAA 'B' cut and less than a second off from an 'A' cut. Not far behind were Austin Byrd and Brett Pinfold, who came in fourth (1:45.43) and sixth (1:45.82), respectively, to also earn NCAA 'B' cuts.
Sophomore Cannon Clifton earned a second-place finish in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 43.72. Lombard, Illinois, native Damon Zito touched fifth (45.26), while sophomore Ryan Barsanti’s time of 46.36 earned him 10th place.
“The men were terrific as well,” Hite said. “I’m very pleased with where we are and what we were able to accomplish. Cannon Clifton was great. Matt Hutchins was very good and he had a terrific mile today. Brett Pinfold, Drew teDuits, really just top to bottom we did great all around. I couldn’t think of how we could do better, so we were just fantastic.”
Leading the Badgers in the 200-yard breaststroke was Nick Schafer for the men and Anna Meinholz for the women, who each earned NCAA 'B' cuts. Schafer picked up an individual victory with his time of 1:56.17, while Meinholz came in fourth place (2:15.55). Jake Mandli placed seventh (2:01.46) and Josh Anderson touched 10th (2:03.16), while Holtzen’s time of 2:21.28 earned her ninth place.
Maria Carlson also won the consolation final with a time of 2:16.47, the sixth-fastest time overall.
In the 200-yard butterfly, sophomore Dana Grindall and senior captain Nick Caldwell both came in fourth place to earn NCAA 'B' cuts with times of 1:59.32 and 1:47.04, respectively.
Of note in the 200-yard butterfly were freshmen Hannah James and Max Dolan, who each won the consolation final. James, a native of Punta Gorda, Florida, clocked in at 2:01.96 to earn the ninth-fastest time overall, while Southbury, Connecticut, native Dolan and his time of 1:49.99 marked the ninth-fastest overall.
To close out the meet, Kinney, Van Hout, Tamblyn and Grindall combined for a second-place finish in the 400-yard freestyle relay with a time of 3:21.14, the fastest this season. Competing for the men were Barsanti, Hutchins, Ryan Stack and Byrd, who finished in fourth place with a time of 3:02.77.
On the boards, sophomore Ashley Peterson placed fifth in the platform event with a score of 239.00 and freshman Max Reynolds’ score of 176.05 earned him an 18th-place finish.
“Ashley Peterson dove incredibly well,” Hite said. “The diving competition was stiffer than the swimming competition at this invite, but she did very well, so that was nice to see.”
Wisconsin returns to action when it travels to the Texas Invitational in Austin, Texas, which is set to take place Dec. 4-6.
