DANVILLE, Ky. – Day 3 of the SAA conference championships has concluded, and then Trinity men are still leading with a total of 722 points. The Tigers head into the final day of competition tomorrow and will look to finish off its first SAA title.
Meet Recap:
Luke Fender (Jackson, Miss. / St. Andrew's Episcopal) was one of the standout swimmers of this session, beginning it with a win in the 200 free. His time was a 1:39.84, and teammate
Sean Easley (Allen, Texas / Lovejoy) came in second with a time of 1:40.96, which was a personal best for the freshman.
Jason Allen (Springfield, Mo. / Springfield) was also in the A final, and went a personal best time in the morning, coming in sixth in the evening. Fender also helped lead the 400 medley relay to victory with a stellar final leg, edging the Rhodes relay.
Daniel Apostol (Billings, Mont. / Central Catholic) and
Nathan Perez (Alpharetta, Ga. / Johns Creek) swam the breast and fly legs, and
Jack Hester (Round Rock, Texas / Cedar Ridge) led off the relay with a 48.34 100 back. This comes just after his individual win in the 100 back, swimming a time of 48.25, just off of his own school record.
The 100 breaststroke was another exciting event for the Tigers, with Apostol coming in second, and breaking the school record he had just set the same morning with a time of 54.51. He was joined in the heat by
John Key (El Paso, Texas / Franklin),
Caleb del Rosario (Sudbury, Mass. / Lincoln-Sudbury), and
Nathan Lumsdaine (Brentwood, Tenn. / Brentwood Academy), who earned fifth, sixth, and seventh place respectively. In the 100 fly, Perez came in third place, and
William Walker (Houston, Texas / Westside) followed just behind him in fourth, with
Nickolas Rotolo (Houston, Texas / Cairo American College) in eighth place.
The 400 IM was perhaps the men's most impressive event, sweeping the four top spots.
Theodore Ho (Sugar Land, Texas / Clements) won the heat, beating his own best time and second-best time in school history with a time of 4:01.77.
Ryan O'Leary (Austin, Texas / Austin) was barely touched out by Ho, coming in second with a time of 4:01.63.
Grant Bibza (Southlake, Texas / Carroll) and
Apollo Aceves (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif. / Trabuco Hills) came in third and fourth respectively, only a few seconds behind the top two finishers.
The men concluded their diving today with the 3 meter, where
Max Rolla-Mullis (Ann Arbor, Mich. / Pioneer) came in seventh place with 357.60 points. This is a region qualifying score, putting Rolla-Mullis in position to compete in the postseason.
Looking Forward:
Tomorrow concludes the SAA Championship meet, and day four consists of the mile, the 200s of stroke, the 100 free, and the 400 free relay. This is one last shot for the Tigers to maintain their lead and to earn nationals-qualifying times.
