University of Minnesota Athletics
Friday, March 25
Atlanta, GA
9:00 AM (Prelims), 5:00 PM (Finals)
University of Minnesota
at
NCAA Championships
Players Mentioned
Diving
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Breaststroke/Freestyle
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Distance Freestyle
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Freestyle
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Second Fastest Time in History Leads McHugh to Repeat as 100 Breast Champ
3/25/2022 7:21:00 PM | Men's Swimming & Diving
MINNEAPOLIS – Minnesota senior Max McHugh swept the breaststroke events at the NCAA Championships in 2021 and, after Friday's performance, he's halfway to doing it again.
McHugh posted the second fastest time in history as he claimed the 100 breast at the McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta, Ga. After becoming just the second person ever to go under 50 seconds in the event in Friday morning's prelims at 49.95, McHugh went even lower and touched at 49.90.
The Sturgeon Bay, Wis., native led the whole way as his split of 23.27 was .24 ahead of the competition. He then turned in the fastest split over the last 50 yards at 26.63, winning the race by .82 seconds. In history, the only time faster belongs to Indiana's Ian Finnerty, who recorded a 49.69 at the 2018 NCAA Championships.
"It was a good start," McHugh said of his performance in the prelims in a televised post-race interview with ESPN. "It's always nice having your best time. It was a good start to the morning."
When asked about the loaded field he competed against, McHugh said he knows "they're coming every year. It's what pushes me in practice and what pushes me at this meet here. It's great having competitors."
McHugh closed by saying how significant the win was for him.
"It's huge," he said. "It's huge for me, huge for my family, huge for Minnesota."
Lowering his personal record, the Minnesota school record and McAuley pool record, McHugh becomes the third Gopher swimmer in history to repeat as a national champion as Steve Jackman won the 100 free from 1961-62 and the 50 free in 1962 and 1963, while Walt Richardson accomplished the feat in the 100 fly from 1963-64.
Winning his third national title makes McHugh just the ninth Gopher in Minnesota history, across all sports, to win at least three individual titles. The swimming and diving programs are responsible now for five of those individuals, including diver Sarah Bacon, who won her fifth last week to tie for the most.
"The day went about as well as it could have," Minnesota head coach Kelly Kremer said. "We got important team points across the board today from Jake (Butler) and Max.
"I can't say enough about how happy I am for Max. He is consistent in his preparation in and out of the pool every day, is an incredibly hard worker, and he deserves every bit of success that comes his way."
Minnesota also got Honorable Mention All-America honors Friday from junior diver Jake Butler.
Needing to finish in the top 16 to advance, Butler found himself 27th with just two dives left in the prelims. He responded with his best score of the prelims with a 73.50, the fifth-highest overall in round five, to move into a tie for 19th. He then closed it out with a 73.10 in the final round, earning himself the No. 14 score, 369.05, to move on.
In the consolation finals, Butler was eighth after two dives but worked his way up to finish in sixth, good for 14th overall. His score of 373.30 was highlighted by a 75.25 in round five, his best mark of the day. Butler becomes the Gophers first All-American diver since Nick Yang 2019 and the first to do so on the 3-meter since Matt Barnard in 2017.
With points from McHugh and Butler, Minnesota now sits 22nd in the team standings with 27 points.
Also competing Friday was freshman Bar Soloveychik, who finished 41st in the 200 free prelims. His time of 1:34.32 was his third fastest of the season.
Minnesota closes out the 2022 NCAA Championships Saturday morning. Prelims begin at 9 a.m. CT as senior Max McHugh aims to repeat as champion in the 200 breast, while sophomore Chris Nagy competes in the 1650 free at approximately 3:10 p.m.
McHugh posted the second fastest time in history as he claimed the 100 breast at the McAuley Aquatic Center in Atlanta, Ga. After becoming just the second person ever to go under 50 seconds in the event in Friday morning's prelims at 49.95, McHugh went even lower and touched at 49.90.
The Sturgeon Bay, Wis., native led the whole way as his split of 23.27 was .24 ahead of the competition. He then turned in the fastest split over the last 50 yards at 26.63, winning the race by .82 seconds. In history, the only time faster belongs to Indiana's Ian Finnerty, who recorded a 49.69 at the 2018 NCAA Championships.
"It was a good start," McHugh said of his performance in the prelims in a televised post-race interview with ESPN. "It's always nice having your best time. It was a good start to the morning."
When asked about the loaded field he competed against, McHugh said he knows "they're coming every year. It's what pushes me in practice and what pushes me at this meet here. It's great having competitors."
McHugh closed by saying how significant the win was for him.
"It's huge," he said. "It's huge for me, huge for my family, huge for Minnesota."
Lowering his personal record, the Minnesota school record and McAuley pool record, McHugh becomes the third Gopher swimmer in history to repeat as a national champion as Steve Jackman won the 100 free from 1961-62 and the 50 free in 1962 and 1963, while Walt Richardson accomplished the feat in the 100 fly from 1963-64.
Winning his third national title makes McHugh just the ninth Gopher in Minnesota history, across all sports, to win at least three individual titles. The swimming and diving programs are responsible now for five of those individuals, including diver Sarah Bacon, who won her fifth last week to tie for the most.
"The day went about as well as it could have," Minnesota head coach Kelly Kremer said. "We got important team points across the board today from Jake (Butler) and Max.
"I can't say enough about how happy I am for Max. He is consistent in his preparation in and out of the pool every day, is an incredibly hard worker, and he deserves every bit of success that comes his way."
Minnesota also got Honorable Mention All-America honors Friday from junior diver Jake Butler.
Needing to finish in the top 16 to advance, Butler found himself 27th with just two dives left in the prelims. He responded with his best score of the prelims with a 73.50, the fifth-highest overall in round five, to move into a tie for 19th. He then closed it out with a 73.10 in the final round, earning himself the No. 14 score, 369.05, to move on.
In the consolation finals, Butler was eighth after two dives but worked his way up to finish in sixth, good for 14th overall. His score of 373.30 was highlighted by a 75.25 in round five, his best mark of the day. Butler becomes the Gophers first All-American diver since Nick Yang 2019 and the first to do so on the 3-meter since Matt Barnard in 2017.
With points from McHugh and Butler, Minnesota now sits 22nd in the team standings with 27 points.
Also competing Friday was freshman Bar Soloveychik, who finished 41st in the 200 free prelims. His time of 1:34.32 was his third fastest of the season.
Minnesota closes out the 2022 NCAA Championships Saturday morning. Prelims begin at 9 a.m. CT as senior Max McHugh aims to repeat as champion in the 200 breast, while sophomore Chris Nagy competes in the 1650 free at approximately 3:10 p.m.
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