Michigan
U.S. Open (Day 1)
Wolverines Off to Strong Start at U.S. Open
11/30/2006 12:00:00 AM | Men's Swimming & Diving
WEST LAFAYETTE, Ind. -- Members of the No. 12 ranked University of Michigan men's swimming and diving team have completed day one of competition at the U.S. Open on Thursday (Nov. 30). The Wolverines sent 17 swimmers to the three-day, non-diving event that features some of the world's top competitors.
The 200-meter individual medley was a strong event for the Wolverines, where junior Alex Vanderkaay (Rochester, Mich,/Adams), freshman Andr Schultz (Sao Paulo, Brazil/Colegio Palmares) and junior Dane Grenda (Hockessin, Del./Salesianum) all captured NCAA consideration 'B' times. Schultz and Grenda both swam in the A-final, touching the wall in seventh (2:06.82) and eight place (2:07.43), respectively. Vanderkaay swam in the B-final, and finished third with a time of 2:06.19.
Schultz also captured an NCAA 'B' time in the 200-meter backstroke when he finished fifth (2:04.17) in the A-final. Grenda swam to an eight-place finish in the C-final of the same event with a time of 2:09.13.
Sophomores Matt Patton (Matthews, N.C./Butler) and Bobby Savulich (Edison, N.J./St. Joseph) also captured NCAA 'B' times in the 400-meter freestyle. Patton finished in sixth place (3:56.13) in the A-final, and Savulich finished first (3:59.76) in the C-final. Freshman Charlie Houchin (Raleigh, N.C./Williams G. Enloe) and sophomore Christian Sprang (Sicklerville, N.J./St. Augustine) also swam in the finals for the event; Houchin took seventh (4:02.83) in the B-final, and Sprang finished sixth (4:03.89) in the C-final.
Freshman Scott Spann (Austin, Texas/Westlake) captured an NCAA 'B' time in the 100-meter breaststroke. He touched the wall in 1:03.67 and took seventh in the A-final.
Michigan also had two 4x200-meter relay teams capture NCAA 'B' times. The team of Savulich, Patton, Vanderkaay and Schultz finished with the third fastest time (7:34.03). Less than a second behind was the team of Houchin, sophomore Evan Ryser (Katy, Texas/ James E. Taylor), freshman Adam DeJong (Holland, Mich./Holland) and sophomore Sal Barba (Hudson, Mass./St. Johns) in fourth place (7:39.16).
U-M volunteer assistant coach Michael Phelps is also competing at the U.S. Open, along with former Michigan stars Peter Vanderkaay and Davis Tarwater. Phelps finished first (1:59.26) in the 200-meter individual medley A-final. He was also the favorite to win the 200-meter backstroke after capturing the top preliminary time, but Phelps was disqualified in the A-final. Peter Vanderkaay and Tarwater both swam in the 400-meter freestyle. Vanderkaay took fifth (3:55.88) in the A-final, while Tarwater finished third (3:58.48) in the B-final.
Phelps, Peter Vanderkaay and Tarwater also joined fellow Club Wolverine member Klete Keller to capture first place in the 4x200-meter freestyle relay with a time of 7:23.51.
Future Wolverine Dan Madwed of the North Baltimore Aquatic Club finished second in the 200-meter individual medley C-final with a time of 2:07.30. He also swam on the 10th place 4x200-meter freestyle relay team for North Baltimore that clocked a time of 7:48.69.
The Wolverines return to the pool Friday (Dec. 1), for day two of the meet. The Michigan swimmers and divers who are not present at the U.S. Open will be competing in the first day of the EMU Invitational at Jones Natatorium in Ypsilanti, Mich.
Event Winners/U-M Finishes (Day 1)
Preliminary time in parentheses if faster than finals time
"CW" denotes Club Wolverine
200-meter individual medley A-Final (1-8 overall) 1. Michael Phelps, CW 1:59.26 7. Dane Grenda, UM 2:06.82# (2:06.47) 8. Andr Schultz, UM 2:07.43# (2:06.30) B-Final (9-16 overall) 3. Alex Vanderkaay, UM 2:06.19 Prelims 28. Curtis Dauw, UM 2:10.18 37. Shaun Weinberg, UM 2:11.24 400-meter freestyle A-Final (1-8 overall) 1. Ous Mellouli, unatt. 3:53.20 5. Peter Vanderkaay, CW 3:55.88 6. Matt Patton, UM 3:56.13# B-Final (9-16 overall) 1. Klete Keller, CW 3:52.53 3. Davis Tarwater, CW 3:58.48 7. Charlie Houchin, UM 4:02.83 (4:00.58#) C-Final (17-24 overall) 1. Bobby Savulich, UM 3:59.76# 6. Christian Sprang, UM 4:03.59 Prelims 30. Adam DeJong, UM 4:05.73 52. Johnny Austermann, UM 4:10.91 Erik Vendt, CW DQ 100-meter breaststroke A-Final (1-8 overall) 1. Mark Gangloff, Auburn Aquatics 1:01.07 (1:00.76) 7. Scott Spann, UM 1:03.67# Prelims 36.Grant Burtch, UM 1:07.43 200-meter backstroke A-Final (1-8 overall) 1. Roland Rudolf, Univ. of Florida 2:02.27 5. Andr Schultz, UM 2:04.17# Michael Phelps, CW DQ (2:01.62) C-Final (17-24 overall) 8. Dane Grenda, UM 2:09.13 Prelims 49. Sal Barba, UM 2:10.96 50-meter freestyle A-Final (1-8 overall) 1. Cullen Jones, N.C. State Aquatics 22.11 Prelims 29. Evan Ryser, UM 24.15 35. Bobby Savulich, UM 24.34 46. Chris Brady, UM 24.50 4x200-meter freestyle relay 1. Club Wolverine 7:23.51 (Davis Tarwater, Michael Phelps Peter Vanderkaay, Klete Keller) 3. UM-A 7:34.03# (Bobby Savulich, Matt Patton Alex Vanderkaay, Andr Schultz) 4. UM-B 7:37.16# (Charlie Houchin, Evan Ryser Adam DeJong, Sal Barba) # NCAA consideration timeContact: Tim Trunzo (734) 763-4423
Players Mentioned
