Notre Dame Fighting Irish - Official Athletics Website

Irish Break Four More School Records, Post First-Ever 1-2 Finish In Moving Into Second Place In BIG EAST Championships

Feb. 20, 2004

Results

EAST MEADOW, N.Y. – Sophomore Jamie Lutkus (Granger, Ind./Penn H.S.) and junior David Moisan (Fisherville, Ky./Louisville Male H.S.) posted the first-ever Notre Dame 1-2 finish in the BIG EAST Championships, taking the top two spots in the 400-yard individual medley, and the Irish broke four more University records in moving into second place after the second day of competition in the Nassau County Aquatic Center. Freshman Tim Kegelman (Yorktown, Va./Tabb H.S.) broke the school record in the 100 fly for the second time in as many sessions, while sophomore Doug Bauman (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Preparatory School) set the 100 back record, and the 200 medley and 800 freestyle relay teams also etched their names in the record books.

Notre Dame has 422 points, while seven-time defending champion Pittsburgh leads the meet with 534 points. The Irish lead the field in points scored in swimming events, but the Panthers’ 116-point advantage in the diving events – due in large part to having seven divers, compared to just one for Notre Dame – has given them the lead. Virginia Tech slipped from second to third, heading into the final day with 400.50 points.

In the third event of the evening, Lutkus and Moisan made Irish history, taking the top two spots in the 400 IM. Lutkus, who set the University record in finishing second in the conference meet last year, won the race in 3:55.40. He now owns each of the top four times in school history in the event. Moisan, who was third in the prelims and finished seventh in each of the last two years, came in right behind him with a time of 3:56.83, finishing ahead of 2002 champion Eric Limkemann of Pittsburgh.

Lutkus’ victory was the sixth – and first since 2000 – for Notre Dame in the BIG EAST Championships since joining the conference in 1995-96. It was the first Irish title in an individual medley event.

Freshman Justin Barber (Carson City, Nev./Carson H.S.) was seventh in the race in 4:00.46.

Bauman finally broke through to break the school record in the 100 back after previously holding the second-, third-, fourth-, and fifth-quickest times in school history. He bettered David Horak’s mark of 50.33 with a sixth-place time of 50.16. Freshman Alan Carter (Bethel Park, Pa./Bethel Park H.S.) finished seventh in 51.00.

Kegelman broke the school record in the100 fly for the second time in one day, shaving .02 seconds off his morning time to finish in 48.43, which tied for second place. He became the first Notre Dame swimmer ever to finish in the top six at the BIG EAST meet in the event. Junior Frank Krakowski (Erie, Pa./Cathedral Preparatory School), who set the school record in the race in last year’s conference meet, tied with freshman Louis Cavadini (South Bend, Ind./Riley H.S.) for fifth in 49.11.

In the first relay of the day, the 200 medley, the team of Bauman, Randolph, Kegelman, and Krakowski finished fourth in a time of 1:39.48. It was .10 better than the previous best mark in program history, set by Bauman, Jason Fitzpatrick, Krakowski, and Randolph in last year’s BIG EAST meet.

Co-captain Matt Obringer (Jacksonville, Fla./The Bolles School), freshman Brian Feeman (Sanger, Calif./Immanuel H.S.), junior Matt Bertke (Edgewood, Ky./Covington Catholic H.S.), and freshman Ted Brown (Kokomo, Ind./Western H.S.) concluded the session by breaking their own Irish record in the 800 free relay, taking third in 6:42.55. The finish matched the best-ever for Notre Dame in the event at the BIG EAST meet. The previous record of 6:45.44 was set at this season’s Notre Dame Invitational.

In the 200 free, Obringer was the top Irish finisher, taking fourth in 1:38.64 to earn an NCAA “B” cut, which means he will be considered for a berth in next month’s NCAA Championships. Brown was eighth in 1:40.45.

Freshman Scott Coyle (Indianapolis, Ind./Hamilton Southeastern H.S.), Notre Dame’s lone diver, continued his strong performance, scoring 12 points for the Irish via a seventh-place finish in one-meter diving with 257 points.

Sophomore Tim Randolph (Crown Point, Ind./Merrillville H.S.) led the Irish in the 100 breaststroke, taking seventh in a career-best 55.84. Senior co-captain Josh Dermott (El Dorado Hills, Calif./Rio Americano H.S.) posted the best time of his career in his last collegiate meet, coming in 11th in 56.43. Sophomore Tyler Grenda (Hockessin, Del./Salesianum H.S.) was 15th in 57.16, which matched the best time of his career.

Sophomore Patrick Heffernan (Norcross, Ga./Norcross H.S.) was 13th in the 400 IM in 4:03.10.

Sophomore Steve Shomberger (Spotsylvania, Pa./Courtland H.S.) competed in two consolation finals, taking 11th in the 100 back in 51.33 and 15th in the 100 fly with a time of 50.66.

In the 200 free, Freeman was 15th in 1:42.29, while O’Berry finished 16th in 1:42.36.