University of Minnesota Athletics
2008-09 Men's Swimming and Diving Preview
10/28/2008 12:00:00 AM | Men's Swimming & Diving
Breaststroke
DEPTH CHART:
Jon Roberts, Sr. (100-200)
Colin Lee-To, Sr. (100-200)
Ivan Gutesa, So. (100-200)
Mark Solfelt, Jr. (100-200)
Rob Schnitzler, So. (100)
Rob Schaefer, Jr. (100-200)
Zach Weis, So. (100-200)
Andy Knaak, Fr. (100-200)
Richard Hills, Fr. (200)
Minnesota’s highest scoring event at the Big Ten Championships a year ago was the 100 breaststroke as Jon Roberts and Colin Lee-To finished 2-3 and four Gophers scored in the event. The duo also became the second and third-fastest performers in school history in the event. Both events figure to be top scorers again with Roberts, Lee-To and sophomore Ivan Gutesa returning. Roberts had a good summer, reaching the semifinals at the Olympic Trials while Lee-To posted a career-best time last year.
Roberts will the be Gophers’ top gun in the 200 breast as well along with Gutesa, who looks to improve after reaching the consolation finals of both events in 2008. Junior Mark Solfelt had a breakthrough season a year ago, posting nearly all career-best times at the Big Ten meet and scoring in the 200 breast and 200 individual medley. “Mark is swimming lifetime bests again,” Dale said. “He had five career-bests over the summer. He is on track to have a great year and his confidence is up.”
The wild card in the breaststroke corps is sophomore Rob Schnitzler. “He had a great summer making senior nationals cuts in both events and he is going to be a big factor this year. He is going to score at Big Tens this year.” He will also contribute in the sprint free events.
Junior Rob Schaefer and sophomore Zach Weis also figure in the mix in the breaststroke as well as freshman Andy Knaak.
Backstroke
DEPTH CHART:
Karl Burdis, Fr. (100-200)
Keith Yoho, Fr. (100-200)
Nadav Kochavi, So. (100)
Nico Zebley, Jr. (200)
Josh Griffey, Sr. (100-200)
It will be very difficult for Minnesota to replace the greatest backstroker in school history in David Plummer, who graduated after racking up 14 All-America certificates and setting school records in both backstroke events. However, the Gophers went a long way in plugging the hole by scoring Ireland’s Karl Burdis in the late signing period. The Irish national record holder in the long course 50 and 100-meter back will provide an instant boost to the lineup and challenge for Big Ten titles. “Karl is very smooth in the water,” Dale said. “He isn’t big but he is smooth. He streamlines extemely well and is great underwater. Karl has outstanding work ethic and I expect him to have a great career at Minnesota.”
Aside from Burdis, the backstroke is a bit of an unknown. Freshman Keith Yoho was a multiple finalist at the Texas State meet and is a senior national qualifier in the 200 back. Senior Josh Griffey, who excels in the individual medley events, could slide into both back events and Nico Zebley will be a factor in the 200 back. But, Israeli butterfly national record holder Nadav Kochavi figures to be a starter in the 100 back when he becomes eligible in January. Sophomore eligible, Kochavi immediately becomes a major point-scoring factor in the the fly and back events. Kochavi originally signed a national letter of intent to Minnesota for the 2006-07 season but returned to Israel.
Butterfly
DEPTH CHART:
Nadav Kochavi, So. (100-200)
Anthony Portela, Sr. (100-200)
Alex Wold, Jr. (200)
Adam Weis, Sr. (200)
Kevin Baseheart, So. (100-200)
Richard Hills, Fr. (200)
Phil Greenberg, So. (100-200)
The butterfly events figure to be very deep for Minnesota with the addition of Kochavi in January. He boasts a huge international competition resume and is the Israeli national record holder in the 50, 100 and 200-meter butterfly. “We will clearly be stronger in the fly events with Nadav,” Dale said. “When he swims the way he is capable of, he will qualify for the NCAAs.”
In addition to Kochavi, Minnesota has three swimmers that have scored at the Big Ten Championships in the fly events. Junior Alex Wold enjoyed a phenomenal summer of competition at the Olympic Trials and the U.S. Open and is the Gophers’ top returning 200 flier. Senior Anthony Portela scored in the 100 fly and earned All-America honors on the 200 medley relay last year. Sophomore Kevin Baseheart scored in the 200 butterfly at Big Tens and hopes to use that experience to score in both events in his second year. Senior Adam Weis has scored each of the past two seasons in the 200 butterfly as well.
Individual Medley
DEPTH CHART:
Alex Wold, Jr. (200-400)
Jon Roberts, Sr. (200)
Mark Solfelt, Jr. (200)
Josh Griffey, Sr. (200-400)
Andy Knaak, Fr. (200-400)
Richard Hills, Fr. (200-400)
Anthony Portela, Sr. (200)
Ivan Gutesa, So. (200)
The Gophers look to fill the void left by the graduation of one of their most consistent Big Ten scorers, Russ Payne, in the IM events. Leading the way is Wold, who reached the finals of the 400 IM at the U.S. Open in August and posted a top 25 finish at Olympic Trials. Wold has finaled in the 400 the last two years at the Big Ten Championships and looks to score in the 200 this year and reach the NCAA Championships for the first time. “First of all, Alex has a hunger to be successful,” Dale said. “He makes the decisions one needs to make. Swimming is important to him and he makes those decisions every day to support that. “
Roberts and Solfelt also return as scorers at the Big Ten Championships. Roberts finished a disappointing 10th at Big Tens in his first year at Minnesota and looks return to the form that earned him All-America honors for Auburn in 2007. Senior Josh Griffey made marked improvements in his first season after transferring from Rutgers, scoring in the 400 IM at Big Tens. The versatile senior from Wisconsin will aim to final in both events.
Andy Knaak, who won the 2008 Minnesota State title in the 200 IM will also figure heavily in the Gophers’ IM rotation as a freshman. Another first year competitor, freshman Richard Hills has the potential to crack the Gophers’ Big Ten Championships lineup for both IM events.
Sprint Free
DEPTH CHART:
Michael Richards, So. (50-100)
Steve Miller, Sr. (50-100)
Colin Lee-To, Sr. (50-100)
Curt Carlson, So. (50-100)
Dominique Massie-Martel, Fr. (100)
Ray Betuzzi, Jr. (100)
Paul Tierney, Fr. (50-100)
Matt Papenfuss, Fr. (50-100)
Rob Schnitzler, So. (50-100)
A perennial strength for Minnesota has been its wealth of sprint freestyle talent and that tradition contiunes in 2008-09. Michael Richards exploded on the scene at his first Big Ten Championships, finishing third in the 50 free after clocking a blazing 19.72 in the prelims and a 19.83 in the finals. Perhaps more impressive was his showing at the U.S. Open in August where he managed a third place finish and blasted the school varsity long course record with a time of 22.39. The former U.S. Junior National champion also made great strides in the 100 free during the summer and looks to a force to reckoned with nationally as a sophomore.
Senior Colin Lee-To became just the 11th Gopher to go under 20 seconds in the 50 free and earned an eighth place finish at the Big Ten Championships. Lee-To will likely add the 100 free to his repetoire this year in addition to the 50 free and 100 breast. Sophomore Curt Carlson looks to continue improvement after swimming on the Gophers’ All-America 400 and 800 freestyle relays.
Perhaps the swimmer that made the largest strides during the summer was senior Steve Miller. He broke school long course records in the 50 and 100 free during the summer and supported those with an 18th place finish in the 50-meter free at the Olympic Trials and finaled in the 100 free at the U.S. Open. Miller, who spent his first two seasons at Rutgers University, will be a force in the Big Ten in his final season. “It was somewhat surprising to see Steve Miller swim that well,” Dale said. “He went from last summer making his first ever Senior National time standard to this summer placing at the U.S. Open and being one of the fastest collegiate athletes at Olympic Trials. His hard work has really paid off.”
The coaching staff is also thrilled about the potential of freshman Matt Papenfuss, a finalist in the 100 and 200 free at the 2008 Minnesota State Championships. “The guy who has really shown a lot early is Matt Papenfuss,” Dale commented. “We really like him. He is going to help our program. He can help this season but he can be a major factor in the future.”
Middle Distance Free
DEPTH CHART:
Steve Miller, Sr. (200)
Ray Betuzzi, Jr. (200-500)
Curt Carlson, So. (200)
Dominique Massie-Martel, Fr. (200-500)
Kevin Baseheart, So. (200)
Adan Weis, Sr. (200-500)
Chris Peterson, So. (200-500)
Paul Tierney, Fr. (200-500)
Jacob Kittilstad, Jr. (200-500)
Matt Papenfuss, Fr. (200)
Minnesota has plenty of depth in the middle distance free events, led by Carlson, Miller and junior Ray Betuzzi. Betuzzi, who is the second-fastest performer in school history in the 500 free, had an impressive summer competing in his native Canada. He took third in the 400-meter free at Canadian Olympic Trials and second at the Canadian Summer Nationals. He is joined by fellow Canadian, Dominique Massie-Martel who signed with Minnesota in the late signing period. Massie-Martel competed for Canada at the 2008 FINA World Junior Championships and is the Quebec provincial record holder in the 100-meter free. Betuzzi and Massie-Martel figure to be stalwarts for the Gophers in the 100, 200 and 500 freestyles.
Additionally, Dale expects Baseheart to contribute in the 200 free while Adam Weis scored in the 500 free last year for the first time and can extend to the 200 free as well. Freshman Paul Tierney, the 2008 Minnesota State Swimmer of the Year, will be a key figure in the middle distance free events for the next four years.
Sophomore Chris Peterson came on toward the end of the 2007-08 season and could crack the Gophers’ Big Ten lineup.
Distance Free
DEPTH CHART:
Mike Holmes, Sr. (500-1650)
Michael Daup, Jr. (500-1650)
Nico Zebley, Jr. (500-1650)\
David Hawker, So. (500-1650)
Chris Peterson, So. (500-1650)
Zach Bolin, Fr. (500-1650)
Matt Crees, So. (500-1650)
Senior Mike Holmes hopes to wrap up a brilliant distance free career. After walking on as a freshman, Holmes has turned into one of the nation’s best distance freestylers. He has earned All-America honors and finished as the runner-up at the Big Ten Championships each of the last two years in the mile. “Mike has blossomed,” Dale said. “What a great collegiate career from a guy that was a finalist at Minnesota State high school meet. He was never a favorite or even finished second or third at the state meet. He has turned into a great miler and 500 free specalist. We depend on him in dual meets to step up and be a stopper for us.”
Junior Michael Daup made big gains in 2007-08, finishing eighth in the mile at the Big Ten Championships and made continued improvement over the summer, winning a national title in the 25K National Open Water Championships. Zebley has been a strong contributor for the Gophers as well in the 500 and 1650 free while the coaches are encouraged by the development of sophomore David Hawker. Freshman Zach Bolin has great potential with a 6-7 frame and smooth technique. Junior Jake Kittilstad and sophomore Matt Crees also add depth to the distance corps.
Relays
Minnesota great depth in the freestyle events continue to power its incredibly consistent relays. With the exception of a rare disqualification, the Gophers have no worse than third in any of the five relays at the Big Ten Championships since 1993, when they placed fourth in the 800 free relay, a run of 15 years. Amazingly, the Gophers have only had three DQs during that run as well. The Gophers have experienced a similar run at the NCAA meet with a streak of 23 straight relays earning All-America honors.
The 2008-09 Gopher relays look just as strong. Although relay stalwart Tyler Schmidt graduated, Miller, Lee-To, Richards and Carlson give the Gophers strong and experienced teams in the 200 and 400 free relays with plenty of additional freestyle stars available with Betuzzi and Massie-Martel possibly figuring on the 400 team. Dale will have Miller, Carlson, Betuzzi, Massie-Martel and possibly Baseheart at his disposal in the 800 free relay.
Although Plummer was the key backstroke player for Minnesota in the medley relays for the last four years, Burdis figures to fill the huge void. Roberts and Lee-To give Dale options for the breaststroke leg while Kochavi and Portela will likely vie for the fly leg at Big Tens. An array of talented freestylers await the coaching staff for selection as the anchor of the medley relays including Miller, Richards and Carlson.
Diving
DEPTH CHART:
Cole Young, Sr.
Drew Brown, So.
Tyler Jepsen, Jr.
Alex Stern, Fr.
Jeff Mitchem, Fr.
Fourth-year diving coach Jason Baumann has perhaps the deepest men’s diving team of his tenure in Minneapolis led by senior captain Cole Young. The Kansas native has steadily improved during his career from narrowly missing scoring in all three events as a freshman to scoring in all three as a sophomore to reaching his first championship final as a junior. Young reached a career milestone over the past summer, earning selection to the United States Diving Selection Camp. He scored in four events at the U.S. Summer Nationals and was the third overall point scorer.
“In the pool, Cole has lived by our mission to continue to improve every day and work and refine our technique,” Baumann said. “He works very hard at it. He spends time in and out of the pool thinking about he can improve his diving. Every year he has improved. He is great to have around and certainly we look for him to have a successful senior year and with his progress and development, that is something you would expect.”
Young’s biggest hurdle in his final season will be reaching the NCAA Championships for the first time, which is very difficult coming out of the deep NCAA Zone C meet consisting primarily of Big Ten competitors. “He is capable and always has been capable of taking the next step,” Baumann added. “Hopefully he can final in all three events at Big Tens. Not just final but compete for titles. The next step is going to the NCAA Zone meet and getting qualified for the NCAA meet. Its been shown over time that if you qualify out of our NCAA zone and go to NCAAs, you usually score in multiple events. Getting through that Zone meet is the big key.”
Outside the water, the senior is one of the top student-athletes at the entire University. “Cole has been an excellent addition to our program. He exemplifies what you look for in a student-athlete. Last year he was a top five student-athlete in our entire athletic department based on a 3.8 grade point average in mechanical engineering.”
Another Gopher aiming at an NCAA bid and Big Ten finals will be sophomore Drew Brown, who also earned a trip to the U.S. Diving Selection Camp after a strong showing at the U.S. Summer Nationals. “Drew has turned the corner,” Baumann said. “Working with him for a little over a year, we have worked on some of his technical flaws that will make a huge impact on how he is able to compete. He is ready to blossom.”
Brown had a strong freshman regular season before missing the Big Ten meet with an injury. He returned for the NCAA Zones and enjoyed a strong summer season, placing eighth overall among all divers at Summer Nationals and teamed with Young to take second in the 10-meter synchro competition. “Drew has had some practices in the first month of the season where we have focused on some details that will turn him from an above average diver to an elite performer. He has taken that to heart.”
Tyler Jepsen also returns after competing in his first Big Ten Championships as a sophomore last season. Jepsen stepped up and scored for Minnesota in the platform event. “We needed him to come and do something and he did,” Baumann said. “He worked hard and came in and scored a point at the Big Ten Championships for us. He earned a letter. He is a smart kid and will do anything that is asked of him. He has embraced the younger kids on the team. The effort that he shows is a big sign of leadership.”
New to the diving roster this year is freshman Alex Stern, the 2008 Minnesota State High School champion. Baumann is very familiar with Stern’s ability after coaching him in the Twin Cities Diving Club. “Alex is very talented,” Baumann said. “He can rip very well. We need to get him faster and stronger. That is one of the first things we have worked on is his strength. He is building already in our weight program. He had a great senior year at Chaska High School and is familiar with me working in our club program. He had a great summer with our club program and we are looking to build on that.”
Also new to the diving mix is freshman Jeff Mitchem from Illinois who looks to gain experience and develop his technique under Baumann’s tutelage.
The diving season is highlighted by the 2009 NCAA Zone C Championships at University Aquatic Center which will give the Gophers an advantage vying for NCAA Championships berths. “We have talked as a team,” Baumann explained. “In sports such as diving, you are taking in all of your senses. Visual cues, the environment, the atmosphere. We are fortunate to have the meet at home. You can visualize every day in practice and put yourself in the same state you will be in at Zones. It makes it real every day.”
Players Mentioned
