University of Minnesota Athletics
Gophers Start Season Strong
12/14/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Swimming & Diving
The Minnesota swimming and diving squad is currently tied for 12th in the CSCAA rankings. To start the season, the Golden Gophers collected dual meet wins over Wisconsin and Iowa before falling to North Carolina. Next, the team had a successful Minnesota Grand Prix. The Gophers wrapped up the fall portion of their season at the Georgia Fall Invitational Dec. 3-5, and now head into final exams and a break from swimming competition.
At this point in the season, two Gopher relays and six individual swimmers have swum at least one NCAA "B" qualifying time. Curt Carlson has “B” times in three events, while Michael Richards, Matt Benecki, and Kyler Van Swol have “B” times in two events each. Kevin Baseheart and Ivan Gutesa have one each.
Minnesota’s 200-yard, 400-yard, and 800-yard freestyle relay squads earned All-America honors at last season’s NCAA Championships, and many of the components of those relays returned this season. The Gophers have yet to compete in the 200 free relay, but the success of their 400 and 800 relay teams is not surprising.
Nor is it surprising that Carlson, Richards, Baseheart, and Gutesa have swum qualifying times. All are veterans of the NCAA Championships. On the other hand, Benecki—a one-time winner last season—has been having a breakout season. The sophomore has picked up five dual meet victories, and had strong showings at the Minnesota Grand Prix and Georgia Invite. One newcomer who has a big impact for the team is Van Swol. He owns the team’s top times in three events, as well as second-best times in two other events. He has also been part of multiple NCAA “B” qualifier relay teams.
On the diving boards, Drew Brown and Kris Jorgensen continue to lead the way. Both dove at the NCAA Championships last season. Brown has the top scores on the platform and 1-meter board, while Jorgensen leads on the 3-meter board. Freshman Turner Eckstrom has the third best scores after Brown and Jorgensen.
At the end of the month, the Gopher swimmers will travel to Hawaii, and the divers to China, for training. When they return to Minnesota, their first meet will be at home against Missouri on Saturday, Jan. 15. Then the Gophers will travel to West Lafayette, Ind., for a triple dual meet against Purdue and Wisconsin (Jan. 29) and host the Minnesota Challenge (Feb. 4-5) before moving into the championship portion of their season. Minnesota will host both the Big Ten (Feb. 23-26) and NCAA Championships (Mar. 24-26) at the Aquatic Center.
Top NCAA "B" Qualifying Times:
400 free relay (Carlson, Zach Bolin, Richards, Van Swol) (2:57.30)
800 free relay (Mike Vernoia, Carlson, Matt Papenfuss, Hrvoje Capan) (6:34.93)
Mike Richards: 50 free (19.83), 100 free (44.03)
Curt Carlson: 50 free (20.17), 100 free (44.07), 200 free (1:38.01)
Matt Benecki: 500 free (4:24.98), 1650 free (15:31.25)
Kevin Baseheart: 200 fly (1:47.08)
Kyler Van Swol: 100 fly (47.86), 200 fly (1:47.89)
Ivan Gutesa: 100 breast (54.78)
At this point in the season, two Gopher relays and six individual swimmers have swum at least one NCAA "B" qualifying time. Curt Carlson has “B” times in three events, while Michael Richards, Matt Benecki, and Kyler Van Swol have “B” times in two events each. Kevin Baseheart and Ivan Gutesa have one each.
Minnesota’s 200-yard, 400-yard, and 800-yard freestyle relay squads earned All-America honors at last season’s NCAA Championships, and many of the components of those relays returned this season. The Gophers have yet to compete in the 200 free relay, but the success of their 400 and 800 relay teams is not surprising.
Nor is it surprising that Carlson, Richards, Baseheart, and Gutesa have swum qualifying times. All are veterans of the NCAA Championships. On the other hand, Benecki—a one-time winner last season—has been having a breakout season. The sophomore has picked up five dual meet victories, and had strong showings at the Minnesota Grand Prix and Georgia Invite. One newcomer who has a big impact for the team is Van Swol. He owns the team’s top times in three events, as well as second-best times in two other events. He has also been part of multiple NCAA “B” qualifier relay teams.
On the diving boards, Drew Brown and Kris Jorgensen continue to lead the way. Both dove at the NCAA Championships last season. Brown has the top scores on the platform and 1-meter board, while Jorgensen leads on the 3-meter board. Freshman Turner Eckstrom has the third best scores after Brown and Jorgensen.
At the end of the month, the Gopher swimmers will travel to Hawaii, and the divers to China, for training. When they return to Minnesota, their first meet will be at home against Missouri on Saturday, Jan. 15. Then the Gophers will travel to West Lafayette, Ind., for a triple dual meet against Purdue and Wisconsin (Jan. 29) and host the Minnesota Challenge (Feb. 4-5) before moving into the championship portion of their season. Minnesota will host both the Big Ten (Feb. 23-26) and NCAA Championships (Mar. 24-26) at the Aquatic Center.
Top NCAA "B" Qualifying Times:
400 free relay (Carlson, Zach Bolin, Richards, Van Swol) (2:57.30)
800 free relay (Mike Vernoia, Carlson, Matt Papenfuss, Hrvoje Capan) (6:34.93)
Mike Richards: 50 free (19.83), 100 free (44.03)
Curt Carlson: 50 free (20.17), 100 free (44.07), 200 free (1:38.01)
Matt Benecki: 500 free (4:24.98), 1650 free (15:31.25)
Kevin Baseheart: 200 fly (1:47.08)
Kyler Van Swol: 100 fly (47.86), 200 fly (1:47.89)
Ivan Gutesa: 100 breast (54.78)
Players Mentioned
Free/Fly
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Dist. Free
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Dist. Free
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Diving
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Freestyle
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Freestyle
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Breast/IM
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Free/Fly
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Sprint Free
/ Men's Swimming & DivingJacob Johnson - B1G Silver Medal
Saturday, March 01
YuTong Wang Wins 2024 Big Ten 1M Title
Monday, March 04
Max McHugh Wins Two B1G Titles
Monday, February 27
Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center
Saturday, May 21