Michigan
Oakland
Men's Swimming and Diving Dominates Oakland, Miami In Season Opener
9/28/2018 9:32:00 PM | Men's Swimming & Diving
» The Wolverines won all 16 events to sweep Oakland (245-55) and Miami (245-55) in their season debut.
» Twelve different student-athletes won events, including Ricardo Vargas and Ross Todd, who won two events each.
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Canham Natatorium)
Scores: Michigan 245, Oakland 55; Michigan 245, Miami 55; Miami 175, Oakland 125
Records: U-M (2-0), Oakland (0-2), Miami (1-1)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Sept. 29 -- host JDRF Awareness Relay-Only Meet (Canham Natatorium), 10:30 a.m.
• Photo Gallery | Complete Results
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- The University of Michigan men's swimming and diving team won all 16 events -- including wins from 12 different student-athletes -- to defeat Oakland (245-55) and Miami (245-55) in its season opener on Friday (Sept. 28) at Canham Natatorium.
The Wolverines began the meet with a win in the 200-yard medley relay, as the team of senior Kai Williams, junior Tommy Cope, senior Jon Burkett and senior Mokhtar Al-Yamani took it in 1:30.64. Of note were the splits on other relays from sophomore Luiz Gustavo Borges (anchored in 19.58) and freshman Eric Storms (leadoff in 22.98).
Storms was one of three freshmen to win in their Michigan debuts on Friday. After posting the fastest backstroke split of the entire field on the opening relay, Storms won the 100-yard backstroke (50.59) later in the evening. Patrick Callan, a U.S. Junior National Team member, looked impressive in the 200-yard freestyle (1:37.07), leading a 1-2-3-4 finish, while Will Chan out-touched Al-Yamani to win the 100-yard freestyle (45.76).
The Wolverines were strong in the breaststroke events, picking up right where they left off last year. In the 100-yard breaststroke, the junior trio of Jacob Montague (55.43), Cope (56.09) and Jeremy Babinet (56.39) went 1-2-3. Another junior, Charlie Swanson, later took the top spot in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:03.14), leading a 1-2-3-4 finish along with freshman AJ Bornstein (2:05.00), Babinet (2:06.56) and junior Leo Zabudkin (2:08.91).
Sophomore Ricardo Vargas looked very smooth in both of his wins, posting five-second victories in both the 500-yard freestyle (4:24.44) and 1,000-yard freestyle (9:01.70). The Wolverines went 1-2-3-4 in both events, further displaying the depth in the distance group.
Senior Kai Williams kept his splits consistent en route to a dominant win in the 200-yard backstroke (1:48.27), winning by two-and-a-half seconds, while classmate Jon Burkett closed fast to win the 100-yard butterfly (48.52). Other event winners were Borges in the 50-yard freestyle (20.18), Cope in the 200-yard IM (1:50.12) and Roberts, who came down from his distance freestyle events to take the 200-yard butterfly (1:49.54).
Sophomore Ross Todd swept both events in the diving well, finishing first on one-meter (338.30) and three-meter (359.30). Three of the four divers -- Todd, Chris Canning and Collin DeShaw -- achieved their NCAA Zone Diving cut on both boards.Â
The quartet of Al-Yamani, Chan, Montague and Borges closed the meet with a win in the 400-yard freestyle relay (3:01.30).
The Wolverines return to the pool tomorrow (Saturday, Sept. 29) for their JDRF Awareness Relay-Only Meet, beginning at 10:30 a.m. at Canham Natatorium. Admission is free.
Players Mentioned
