University of St. Thomas Athletics
St. Thomas closes day two of Summit League Championships in sixth place
2/22/2024 10:22:00 PM | Men's Swimming & Diving
MINNEAPOLIS, MINN. – The University of St. Thomas men's swimming and diving program saw plenty of highlights on the opening two days of the Summit League Championships. As records fell, the Tommies scored 100 total team points, good enough to put them in sixth place as a team after the opening two days of competition.
DAY ONE:
The St. Thomas men's swim and dive team saw one record fall on the opening day of the Summit League Championships. In the very first swimming event of the tournament, the Tommies saw the team of A.J. Carollo (Long Grove, Ill. / Stevenson), Sean Bannon (Rochester, Minn. / Century), Philip Jensen (Hastings, Minn. / Hastings) and Nick Welle (Alexandria, Minn. / Alexandria) finished seventh in the 200 medley relay, clocking a time of 1:28.99. That time was not only good enough for a top-5 finish, it also broke the program record, originally set during the 2023 Summit League Championships. The St. Thomas "B" team also found success in the event, as the team of Lucas Becker (Carver, Minn. / Chanhassen), Jensen Richard (Rochester, Minn. / Century), Nicholas Salido (Kansas City, Mo. / Rockhurst) and Willy Coborn (St. Paul, Minn. / North Saint Paul) clocked a time of 1:31.79.
The Tommies success continued in the 800 freestyle relay, earning another top-8 finish in the event. St. Thomas' "A" team of Luke Ridler (Chaska, Minn. / Chaska), Alex Foti (Waukesha, Wis. / Waukesha West), Tommy Seiler (Menomonee Falls, Wis. / Menomonee Falls) and Matt Glenna (Cottage Grove, Minn. / Park) finished in sixth place with a time of 6:44.62. The "B" team also dropped a significant amount of time from its seeded time. Blake Baertlein (Eagle, Wis. / Waukesha South), Charlie Folks (Eden Prairie, Minn. / Eden Prairie), Julien Yung (Duluth, Minn. / East) and Morgan Gillard (Woodbury, Minn. / East Ridge) finished the race in 6:56.89, 13 seconds faster than the seeded time of 7:09.50.
The diving competition also started Friday afternoon, as the men started with the 1-meter event. Though the Tommies did not place, all three divers put together strong performances, including Ben Linde (Andover, Minn. / Andover). The sophomore was St. Thomas' top diver, closing with a six dive score of 232.35. Julius Krumenacher (Waukesha, Wis. / Waukesha North) and Austin Kantor (Elk River, Minn. / Elk River) finished with scores of 222.30 and 212.60 respectively.
DAY TWO:
Folks and Foti kicked things off on the second day of competition, as both qualified for "B" finals in the 500 free. Folks finished in 13th place in prelims in the first individual event of his collegiate career thanks to his season best time of 4:38.34. Foti was not far behind. The junior finished in 14th in prelims with a time of 4:38.41. The two would finish in those same places in the finals race. Folks would clock a new college career best time of 4:36.41 in the event, claiming 13th, while Foti would close in 14th with a time of 4:38.16.
Like Folks, Becker's Summit League Championship debut also got off to a hot start, as the freshman was the Tommies lone swimmer to qualify for finals in the 50 free. Becker finished 15th in prelims thanks to his time of 20.70. He would go on to finish 15th in finals with a time of 20.71.
Welle was the first alternate in the 50 free thanks to a season best time of 20.75, while Salido dinished just outside the top-18 with a time of 20.80.
St. Thomas' top finisher in the 200 IM was Bannon, who just missed a top-16 finish thanks to his season best time of 1:53.84. Thomson Yatso (Milwaukee, Wis. / Shorewood) finished one place behind his teammate in prelims, closing with a time of 1:54.44. Jensen Richard (Rochester, Minn. / Century) also competed in the event, clocking a time of 1:56.39.
The Tommies put together a strong finish on the second day of competition as the 200 freestyle relay team would finish fifth, marking the first top-5 finish for a St. Thomas relay team at the Summit League Championships. The team of Welle, Becker, Salido and Jensen would drop three seconds from their seeded time of 1:24.71 to finish in fifth with a time of 1:21.52. The "B" team of Carollo, Coborn, Isaac Alberts (Excelsior, Minn. / Minnetonka) and Baertlein clocked a time of 1:23.28, which was also three seconds faster than their seeded time of 1:26.69.
UP NEXT
Thanks to these performances, the Tommies sit in sixth place as a team after two days of competition with a team score of 100. St. Thomas will open day three of the Summit League Championships at 10:00 a.m. sharp on Friday, February 23, at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center in Minneapolis, Minnesota.
Players Mentioned
