Northwestern University Athletics
Wildcats Advance in Four More Events at NCAA Championships
3/25/2005 12:00:00 AM | Men's Swimming and Diving
March 25, 2005
MINNEAPOLIS, Minn. -- No. 15 Northwestern picked up right where it left off last evening as it qualified for the finals in another four events at day two of the NCAA Championships in Minneapolis.
The 'Cats were led once again by sophomore Matt Grevers, who qualified first in the 100 back for tonight's finals. Grevers touched the wall with a time of 46.01 seconds, .36 seconds ahead of this year's fastest time-holder, Florida's Ryan Lochte.
"Ryan's best time this year is almost an entire second better than Matt's." Northwestern Head Coach Bob Groseth said, "If Matt is able to beat him tonight, it will be an upset."
The Wildcats began the day with another strong relay performance, this one coming in the 200 medley relay. The quartet of Grevers, Mike Alexandrov, Kyle Bubolz and David Kormushoff won their heat with a time of 1:26.26 and are seeded fourth for this evening's finals.
Grevers got the 'Cats off to a good start in another duel with Lochte, enabling Alexandrov and Bubolz to pull away from the pack. Kormushoff held off the Florida and Kentucky squads to earn the heat victory.
Alexandrov is Northwestern's other main finals qualifier after finishing fifth in the 100 breast with a time of 53.66. Alexandrov won his heat but two individuals in each of the last two heats bested his time.
Tonight's final will be Alexandrov's first Championship final as an individual.
Northwestern's last swimmer this evening will be Bubolz, who qualified for the consolation finals. Bubolz finished in 13th place in this morning's prelims with a time of 47.23. Bubolz finished third in his heat while second-place finisher Peter Bousquet was the last qualifier for the main finals.
Kormushoff also swam the 100 butterfly, finishing in 42nd place with a time of 49.58.
The 'Cats two upperclassmen, junior Brian Davis and senior Matt Wever, put together a pair of season-best performances in this afternoon's prelims but were unable to qualify for tonight's finals.
Davis finished in 17th place in the 400 IM with a season-best time of 3:51.33. Wever completed the 200 freestyle with his season-best time of 1:37.57, which placed him a tie for 30th.
Both Davis and Wever finished in second place in their respective heats.
"Brian and Matt both did an awesome job today for us." Groseth said, "Brian missed qualifying for the final by one spot in an event that is not his specialty."
The finals for day two's events begin at 7 p.m. this evening. The fourth-seeded 200 medley relay will be up first, followed by Bubolz's 100 butterfly consolation final, Alexandrov's 100 breast final, and Grevers' 100 backstroke final.
For results and complete Championships coverage, visit the Division I NCAA Championships Web site.
