Utah Men’s Swimming Finishes Fifth at Pac-12 Championships
University of Utah Utes Men’s Swimming and Diving Team performs during a dual meet vs. University of Southern California at the Ute Natatoriam in Salt Lake City on Feb. 23, 2020. (Photo by Abu Asib | The Daily Utah Chronicle)
March 8, 2020
The Utah men’s swim team had a strong showing at Pac-12 Championships despite difficult competition, finishing fifth after four days of competition in Federal Way, Washington.
Day 1
To begin the Pac-12 Men’s swimming championships, the University of Utah set a new school record in the 400 medley relay.
In the final event of the evening, Utah’s team of Andrew Britton, Cooper DeRyk, Liam O’Haimhirgin and David Fridlander finished runners-up as they set a new record of 3:07.49. This was almost two-tenths of a second faster than the previous record set at the 2018 Pac-12 Championships.
In the other relay of the night, Utah swimmers Robert King, Cole Giandinoto, Rahiti De Vos and Finn O’Haimhirgin competed in the 800 free, where they placed sixth overall.
Day 2
On the second day of competition, De Vos won the “B” final of the 500 free with a time of 4:16.49. Utah then saw success from King, who took third in the “C” final and recorded the fifth-fastest time in Utah history at 4:21.83.
Utah also sent four swimmers to the finals of the 50 free. DeRyk took third in the “B” final with his time of 19.72 and finished just ahead of fellow Ute Liam O’Haimhirgin with his time of 19.73.
To finish the evening DeRyk, Fridlander, Liam O’Haimhirgin and Santiago Contreras placed fifth in the 200 free relay.
Day 3
As competition continued into the third day, sophomore Britton set a new school record in the 100 breast. Britton beat his own record from earlier in the season with a time of 52.95 as he placed fifth. He was followed by fellow Utah swimmer Jaek Horner, who finished with a time of 53.14.
Ben Waterman was sensational in the 100 fly prelims as he set the second-fastest time in Utah swim history with a time of 46.23. However, he struggled in the finals and ended up finishing eighth overall.
Fridlander also impressed in the 100 back as he won the “B” final with a time of 47.83.
Day 4
The final night of competition was highlighted by De Vos, who took seventh in the 1650 free. He finished with a time of 14:57.07, the second-fastest time in Utah history.
Utah also saw a strong performance by Liam O’Haimhirgin who qualified for the championship final of the 100 free, where he placed eighth.
Through the 21 events, the University of California finished first with a score of 856, followed by the University of Arizona in second at 578 and Stanford University in third at 573.5. Utah finished the championships and their season fifth with a final score of 384.
