Titans To Make Waves At WIAC Men's Swimming & Diving Championship
UW-Oshkosh's Grady Hilgendorf, Jarrett Lieder and Matt Wilke all earned a pair of top 15 seeds for this weekend's Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Men's Swimming & Diving Championship (presented by Culver's) in Brown Deer.
Competition in the three-day championship begins Thursday (Feb. 15) and concludes Saturday (Feb. 17) at the Walter Schroeder Aquatic Center. Sessions will be held at 10 a.m. and 6:30 p.m. on both Thursday and Friday (Feb. 16) and at 10 a.m. and 6 p.m. on Saturday.
UW-La Crosse is serving as the host institution for the 56th men's championship that will be held concurrently with the 47th women's championship.
UW-Stevens Point strives for its 19th consecutive team title after scoring 971.5 points to claim its 21st conference championship in program history a year ago. UW-Eau Claire placed second to the Pointers with 720.5 points while UW-Whitewater finished third with 656, UW-La Crosse fourth with 539 and UW-Oshkosh fifth with 198.
Wilke is the conference's top seed in the 3-meter diving with 454.80 points (11 dives). The freshman also ranks second off the 1-meter board with an 11-dive score of 450.65. Dylan Glumac of UW-Eau Claire is seeded first in the 1-meter diving with 494.00 points.
Lieder, a freshman, is seeded fourth in the 1,650-yard freestyle with a time of 17:15.73 and 11th in the 500-yard freestyle at 4:57.51. UW-Whitewater's Zachary Noll is seeded first in the 1,650-yard freestyle with a time of 16:31.71 and UW-La Crosse's Cal Hartt in the 500-yard freestyle at 4:41.18.
Hilgendorf, a senior, owns the 14th seed in the 1,650-yard freestyle with a time of 18:14.44 and the 15th seed in the 100-yard breaststroke at 1:04.28. UW-Whitewater's Thomas Stigler is seeded first in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 57.90 seconds.
UW-Oshkosh sophomore Bryan Solomon achieved the 15th seed in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 54.61 seconds. The event's top time of 49.46 seconds belongs to UW-Stevens Point's Sam Jekel.
This year's championship features 13 student-athletes who have combined to win 22 individual and 35 relay first-place medals at previous league meets.
UW-Stevens Point's Jekel is the most decorated returnee with seven individual and 11 relay titles. A year ago, he won the 100-yard backstroke, 100-yard butterfly, 200-yard freestyle relay, 400-yard freestyle relay, 200-yard medley relay and 400-yard medley relay.
In 2015, Jekel captured the 50-yard freestyle, 100-yard freestyle, 100-yard butterfly, 200-yard freestyle relay, 400-yard freestyle relay, 200-yard medley relay and 400-yard medley relay. At the 2014 championship, he posted first-place finishes in the 50-yard freestyle, 100-yard freestyle, 200-yard freestyle relay, 400-yard freestyle relay and 200-yard medley relay.
The Pointers' Jack Englehardt is the two-time defending champion in the 50-yard freestyle and added a 100-yard freestyle crown in 2016. In relay competition, he owns titles in the 200-yard freestyle relay, 400-yard freestyle relay and 200-yard medley relay in 2016 and 2017, along with the 400-yard medley relay in 2017.
UW-Stevens Point's Grant Moser won the 100-yard butterfly at the 2016 championship and holds crowns in the 400-yard freestyle relay in 2017, 800-yard freestyle relay in 2016 and 2017, and 400-yard medley relay in 2017.
The Pointers' Garrett Richetto and Jacob Aegerter are the defending champions in 200-yard freestyle and 200-yard butterfly, respectively. Richetto contributed to the triumphant 800-yard freestyle relay teams of 2016 and 2017 while Aegerter was a member of the winning 400- and 800-yard freestyle relay squads last year.
Reilly Donnellan has been a member of UW-Stevens Point's winning 200-yard freestyle and 200-yard medley relay teams the past two seasons while adding the 400-yard freestyle relay crown in 2016.
Brandon Richardson helped the Pointers' 200-yard medley relay unit to victories in 2016 and 2017, while Caleb Miller contributed to the first-place 800-yard freestyle relay squad in 2016. UW-Stevens Point's Owen Gluck received Diver of the Meet accolades at last year's championship after winning the one- and three-meter diving events.
UW-Eau Claire's Collin Miller collected Swimmer of the Meet recognition a year ago after winning the 100-yard freestyle, 100-yard breaststroke and 200-yard individual medley.
The Blugolds' Dayton Miller is the defending champion in the 200-yard breaststroke and has won consecutive titles in the 400-yard individual medley. UW-Eau Claire's Dylan Glumac-Berberich earned a piece of the one-meter diving title a year ago and Logan Coert helped the Blugolds' 400-yard medley relay team to victory at the 2016 championship.
UW-Eau Claire owns a league-best 25 WIAC championships while UW-Stevens Point follows with 21, UW-La Crosse and UW-Platteville with four apiece and UW-Milwaukee with one.