University of Minnesota Athletics

Friday, November 3
5:00 PM

University of Minnesota

120
vs
178

Wisconsin

Players Mentioned

Diving
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Diving
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Backstroke/Butterfly/Freestyle
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Freestyle
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Freestyle/Butterfly/IM
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Diving
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Backstroke
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Freestyle
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
IM/Butterfly/Breaststroke
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Diving
/ Men's Swimming & Diving
Diving
/ Women's Swimming & Diving
Swim & Dive vs Wisconsin
Photo by: Bjorn Franke

Gophers Drop Dual Meet to Wisconsin

11/3/2023 8:04:00 PM | Men's Swimming & Diving, Women's Swimming & Diving

MINNEAPOLIS - The Minnesota men's and women's swimming and diving teams each suffered losses in their dual meet on Friday evening. The Gopher women, ranked No. 24 by the CSCAA, fell 181-119 against the No. 12-ranked Badgers, while the men fell to No. 22 ranked Wisconsin 178-120.  

The women's team was led by sole victor Megan Van Berkom, who picked up wins in the 200 fly and 200 IM. Her time of 1:57.50 in the 200 fly is good for a NCAA 'B' cut and currently sits as the fastest time of the year for the event in the Big Ten. The senior also swam her best time of the season in the 200 IM at 2:00.15 and placed second in the 200 breast with a season-high time of 2:16.74. 

Senior Paula Rodriguez Rivero picked up a pair of second-place finishes in both the 100 and 200 backstroke. Her time of 54.28 in the 100 and 2:01.49 in the 200 were both personal-bests this season. The Spain native also led off the 200 medley relay team that had its fastest time of the season, taking second place at 1:41.62.

Gopher newcomer Mina Kaljevic finished second in the 100 free with a time of 50.92 to go along with a third-place finish and season-high time in the 200 free of 1:50.93. Mina also contributed to the Minnesota 400 free relay team that swam their top time this season at 3:22.73 en route to a second-place finish.

The Gopher women swept both the 1-meter and 3-meter dives, taking the top five places in each led by freshman Elna Widerstrom. Widerstrom topped the standings in both categories, scoring 315.23 in the 1-meter and 337.95 in the 3-meter. Senior Megan Phillip also crossed the 300-point threshold with a 301.43 for a new season-high in the 1-meter to take second while sophomore Vivi Del Angel scored 296.33 to take second on the 3-meter. 

The men picked up two victories on the night, starting with Bar Soloveychik in the 200 free. His time of 1:38.01 is the second-fastest on the team this season behind only himself. The junior also placed second in the 500 free with a season-best time of 4:28.24 before anchoring the 400 free relay team that took second place with a time of 3:01.21.

The other victory for the men came from freshman Davide Harabagiu in the 100 fly (48.40). Teammate Kaiser Neverman was close behind, taking second place in the 100 fly with a time of 48.56. 

The 100 fly was one of Neverman's four second-place finishes on the night. The others came in the 200 fly (1:47.25), 100 free (44.58) and 200 medley relay (1:28.38). Harabagiu also collected a second-place finish in the 100 back, swimming his fastest time of the year at 48.25.

Freshman YuTong Wang paced the Gophers in the diving well, taking the top spot in both events. He broke the 400 mark for the second time this season in the 3-meter with a score of 401.70 before winning the 1-meter with a 348.83. Drew Bennett had another solid night, scoring 390.00 on the 3-meter for second place and 336.00 on the 1-meter for third.

The Gophers have a short break in dual meet action, returning to the pool on November 29 for the annual Minnesota Invitational.
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