Feb. 1, 2013
EVANSTON, Ill. – The University of Notre Dame men’s swimming and diving team remained in striking distance at the conclusion of the first session Friday at the Northwestern Invitational inside the Norris Aquatic Center.
The Irish (7-1) lead Missouri State 56-54 after one day of competition. Notre Dame will enter the second day of races trailing host Northwestern by only point (55-54), and Iowa by three points (56-53), with more than half of the quad-dual meet remaining.
Junior All-American Frank Dyer posted a crucial race victory, clocking a time of 20.45 in the 50 free to narrowly edge Northwestern’s Matthew Margritier for the event gold. Dyer now owns the top seven times in the 50 free for Notre Dame this season.
Sophomore Nick Nemetz claimed another event win in the 1-meter dive, scoring a total of 316.35 points to pace the Irish during the diving portion of Friday’s session.
Day two of the Northwestern Invitational is scheduled to begin Saturday at 11 a.m. (ET). The meet’s third and final session is tentatively scheduled to commence at 6 p.m. (ET).
Event-By Event Results:
200 Free Relay: The Notre Dame ‘A’ entry of Dyer, Zachary Stephens, John McGinley and Bill Bass touched the wall in 1:22.90 to claim fourth place. The Irish ‘B’ group of Christopher Johnson, Patrick Olson, Matt Buerger and Michael Hudspith (1:25.15) finished eighth.
500 Free: John Nappi was the fastest Irish competitor in the race, completing the 500 free in 4:37.03 for sixth place overall. Brennan Jacobsen was right behind Nappi in seventh place (4:37.29), with James McEldrew rounding out the top 10 with a time of 4:40.44.
200 IM: Stephens (1:50.11), Bass (1:50.93) and Olson (1:51.29) touched the pad in order to claim second through fourth place, respectively. Colin Babcock was the fourth Notre Dame competitor in the top 10, posting a time of 1:52.20 (seventh place).
50 Free: Dyer claimed the 50 free gold by one one-hundredth of a second over Northwestern’s Margritier (20.46). Kevin Overholt logged a time of 21.09 to claim ninth place, followed by McGinley (21.36) in the 11th position.
400 Medley Relay: The Notre Dame entry of Bogac Ayhan, Cameron Miller, Bass and Dyer posted a time of 3:22.81 (sixth place). The Irish ‘B’ squad of Bertie Nel, Johnson, Stephens and McGinley finished in eighth place (3:26.03).
1-Meter Dive: Nemetz paced the field with a score of 316.35 points to earn the win off the 1-meter board. Michael Keft (287.30) was the next Notre Dame finisher, claiming fifth place.
–ND–