Wisconsin Badgers
Big Ten Championships
Badgers collect silver in 800 free relay at B1G Championships
February 25, 2026 | Men's Swimming & Diving
Wisconsin breaks the school record in the 800 free relay
MADISON, Wis. — The No. 24 Wisconsin men's swim and dive teams wrapped up day one of competition at the Big Ten Championships at home in Madison. Highlighted by a school record and second-place finish in the 800 free relay, Wisconsin (102 pts) sits in fourth place overall, 14 points behind No. 4 Michigan in first.
How it happened:
In the 200 medley relay, Nathan Welker, Brayden Henkel, Charlie Jones and Ben Wiegand combined for a 1:23.65 finish to earn seventh in the event. The time marks a top-two all-time finish at UW.
The divers competed in an exhibition diving event during the intermission before swimming resumed with the 800 free relay. Wisconsin closed out the night with an impressive performance in the relay, as Luukas Vainio, Enzo Solitario, Yoav Romano and Dominik Mark Torok combined for a school record 6:08.87 finish. Freshman Solitario swam a blistering 1:30.43 split in the second leg of the relay, the fastest time on the field.
Competition resumes tomorrow with the 100 fly, 400 IM, 200 free, 100 breast, 200 free relay and 1-meter diving. Prelims will begin at 10 a.m. (CT) and finals at 5:30 p.m. (CT).
Team Scores after Day 1
1. Michigan - 116
2. Indiana - 110
3. Ohio State - 114
4. Wisconsin - 102
5. Northwestern - 110
6. USC - 98
7. Purdue - 96
8. Minnesota - 92
9. Penn State - 40
Final Results
200 Medley Relay
7. Wisconsin (Welker, Henkel, Jones, Wiegand) - 1:23.65
800 Free Relay
2. Wisconsin (Vainio, Solitario, Romano, Mark Torok) - 6:08.87
Players Mentioned
