CMS Men's Swimming and Diving Sets 11 Program Records on Way to Eighth-Place NCAA Finish
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. - The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps men's swimming and diving program set 11 new program records, as well as NCAA Division III record in the 200-yard butterfly from Frank Applebaum, and had four individuals and three relays earn first-team All-America honors, as it came in eighth place at the NCAA Championships from Wednesday-Saturday at the IU Natatorium on the campus of IUPUI.
Applebaum's 1:44.01 in the 200 fly took over a half-second off the previous NCAA record, which had held since 2017. He swam it two seconds faster than his previous best (1:46.06), and also won the race with surprising ease, coming in two seconds ahead of the second-place finisher (1:46.02).
In addition to his national record in the 200 fly, Applebaum was also a first-team All-American in the 100 fly, setting a new program record in that event as well with a 47.45. He was joined on the first-team All-America podium by Marco Conati, who earned All-America honors for the second time with his seventh-place finish in 47.56, the second-fastest time in program history, after coming in fourth the last time CMS competed at nationals in 2019.
Lucas Lang added a runner-up finish in the 1650, while breaking his own program record in both the 500 and the 1650 over the week. His 1650 time of 15:17.24 knocked over five seconds off his previous best set at the SCIAC Championships, and he made a strong run at the national title, swimming side by side along with the eventual champion (Kellen Roddy of Johns Hopkins), and holding the lead at the 1300-yard mark before being edged out by just under four seconds. He also set a new CMS record in the 500 free in 4:25.67, which won the consolation heat and enabled him to finish ninth.
Nick Tekieli was responsible for more new program records than anyone, breaking CMS marks in all seven events he competed in, three individual events and four relays. His top individual finish was third place in the 100 back, where he swam a 46.99 to finish in third and earn first-team All-America honors. He came into the event seeded 16th, but had the second fastest swim in prelims to set a new CMS record, and then topped that by coming in under 47 seconds in the final.
Tekieli also had a major milestone when he broke 20 seconds in the 50 free, the first Stag swimmer to ever accomplish that feat. His 19.98 in the consolation final was the fifth-fastest time at the event, and earned him a ninth-place finish. He also set a new program record in the 200 back, a race he swam for the first time at nationals, finishing ninth with a 1:45.05.
The CMS relays featured a pair of second-place finishes in both the 200 medley and the 400 medley. The 200 medley relay helped set the tone for the week on the opening night by finishing in 1:27.38 to earn second place, just .30 behind the champions from Emory. Anderson Breazeale led off with a 22.50 in the backstroke, with Limm following in the breaststroke, Conati swimming the butterfly leg in only 20.60 seconds, the second-fastest 50 fly split in NCAA Division III history, and Tekieli swimming the anchor freestyle leg in just 19.47 seconds.
The 400 medley relay came in eighth in prelims to earn the last spot in the championship final, and then leapt all the way to second, with a CMS-record 3:12.34. Tekieli led off with the backstroke in 47.19, with Limm (breaststroke), Applebaum (butterfly) and Conati (freestyle) finishing it off, just .35 seconds behind the champions from Chicago (3:11.99).
The 400 free relay team added one more first-team All-America finish to cap off the meet, coming in seventh place and breaking the three-minute barrier in the process (2:58.88) in a SCIAC-record time. Breazeale led it off, followed by Conati, Eric Workman and Tekieli, who helped set his sixth CMS record.
In addition to the first-team All-America honors won by Applebaum (100 fly, 200 fly), Conati (100 fly), Lang (1650) and Tekieli (100 back), there were numerous honorable mention All-America winners for CMS athletes who qualified for the consolation finals and finished 9th-16th, Conati (14th in 100 free), Lang (ninth in 500) and Tekieli (ninth in 50 free and 200 back) added honorable mention to their first-team honors. Cyrus Gaylord (13th in three-meter dive) and Breazeale (11th in 200 back)
The 200 yard freestyle relay (Tekieli-Dylan Krueger-Theo Johnson-Conati) finished tenth, but set a SCIAC record in the process with a 1:20.53 and earned honorable mention All-America honors. The 800 free relay team (Applebaum-Lang-Workman-Breazeale) was also an honorable mention All-America winner after coming in 14th.
The eighth-place finish for the Stags was the highest finish for the program since the 2015 team came in fifth, while the 230.50 points earned was the highest total since the 1998 team earned 256.50 and came in fourth.
The Stags will look to build off the foundation of this year's success, as Applebaum, Lang and Tekieli all had tremendous debut seasons on the national level, earning first-team All-America honors and setting multiple program records. CMS will need to replace several key seniors, including Conati and Walter Limm, the program's top breaststroker, but the pieces are in place for the Stags to be regulars in the top 10 for several years to come.