Northwestern University Athletics
Big Ten Championships Arrive For Northwestern
2/23/2015 12:00:00 AM | Men's Swimming and Diving
| 2015 Northwestern Men's Swimming and Diving |
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| 2015 Big Ten Championships |
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| Championships Notes | Northwestern's B1G Notes Package |
| Date | Wednesday-Saturday, Feb. 25-28 |
| Times | 11 a.m. CT Prelims • 1 p.m. CT Diving • 6:30 p.m. CT Finals |
| Location | Campus Recreation and Wellness Center | Iowa City, Iowa |
| Championships Central | HawkeyeSports.com |
| Live Coverage | Live Results | Live Video |
EVANSTON, Ill. -- Northwestern arrives at this week's Big Ten Championships with one favorite for a Big Ten title and a supporting cast of Wildcats eager to make noise in their respective events.
Iowa and its Campus Recreation and Wellness Center (CWRC) play host to the 2015 Big Ten Men's Swimming and Diving Championships Feb. 25-28. With the addition of Rutgers (Maryland does not sponsor swimming and diving anymore, and Illinois still does not for the men), this season marks the first with 12 teams at the B1G meet.
Six Big Ten schools are ranked in the most recent College Swimming Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) dual meet poll, released Feb. 5. Led by No. 6 Michigan, the list also includes Ohio State, Indiana, Minnesota, Iowa and Wisconsin while Purdue is receiving votes. In addition, Northwestern was ranked No. 21 in one of the poll's editions in the fall. Of those seven schools, the Wildcats swam against five of them in 2014-15 dual meets.
NU junior Jordan Wilimovsky will be the top seed in the 1,650 freestyle when that event rolls around on Saturday, one year after finishing second in the race against 2012 London Olympian and then-senior Connor Jaeger of Michigan. With Jaeger graduated, Wilimovsky--a U.S. National teamer in his own right--has his sights set on the title.
In nearly every other event, at least one Wildcat is in prime position to put points on the board for Northwestern. Perhaps the best chance for points in three different events from the same competitor will come on the diving boards in the form of sophomore Andrew Cramer, who performed that feat last year with consolation final berths in the 1-meter, 3-meter and 10-meter competitions. Versatile sophomore swimmer Andy Jovanovic got his feet wet with three bonus final appearances as a freshman in 2014, and now with a year of experience under his belt will be poised to score three times with the talent that made him the No. 12 overall recruit in the nation coming out of high school.
Veterans like seniors Uula Auren in the breaststroke and Mark Ferguson in the back and butterfly have a history of scoring at the Big Ten Championships and want to go out on a successful note. Meanwhile freshmen like Almog Olshtein in the sprint freestyles and Alex Snarski in the 200 back can find themselves in scoring finals in their first conference meets. Both have NCAA `B' cuts already in their careers, while Olshtein will enter this weekend as the No. 8 overall seed in the 50 free.
EVENT-BY-EVENT PREVIEW
SPRINT FREESTYLE: Freshman Almog Olshtein has emerged early in his Northwestern career as a sprint freestyle leader, earning an NCAA `B' cut of 20.10 in the 50 free as the leadoff of the 200 free relay at AT&T U.S. Winter Nationals in December. He also leads NU in the 100 free this year. Versatile sophomore Andy Jovanovic ranks second in both sprint events for the Wildcats this year while freshman Gage Kohner is third and is a key cog of NU's 200 free relay. Sophomore Joao Steiner also has had a nice second season as a sprinter in Evanston.
DISTANCE FREESTYLE: The 200 free has been the personal playground of sophomore Charlie Cole, who has gone nearly two full seconds faster than any other Wildcat in the event this season. After taking 20th in the 200 free at the Big Ten Championships one year ago, Cole is poised for points in 2015. From 500 yards on up to the mile, junior Jordan Wilimovsky is Northwestern's undisputed leader. A favorite for the Big Ten championship in the 1,650, Wilimovsky also should score points for the Wildcats in the 500. Two young guns in sophomore Jonathan Lieberman in the 200 and 500 free, as well as freshman Jonathan Blansfield in the 500 and 1,650 frees, could make noise with strong tapers, as well.
BACKSTROKE: Of all of his events, Andy Jovanovic is likely to swim and score in the 100 back most of all. He has been NU's top swimmer in this race all season long. Senior Mark Ferguson figures to have a scoring chance in the 100 as well after a slow start to his final year in Evanston. Two other Wildcats excel more at the 200 distance, including freshman Alex Snarski, who notched an NCAA `B' cut to win the TYR Invitational in the fall. Junior Grant Halsall also has a strong history in the 200 backstroke.
BREASTSTROKE: Two Wildcats lead Northwestern in this event, Uula Auren in the 100 and Van Donkersgoed in the 200. Both of those Wildcats have scored points and garnered NCAA `B' cuts in past seasons in their respective speciality distances. Senior Aaron Sears could be poised for monster drops in time at the Big Ten meet after he had the best dual of his career in January on Senior Night against Milwaukee at the Norris Aquatics Center.
BUTTERFLY: The 100 fly again will feature strong sprinters Andy Jovanovic and Mark Ferguson as scoring threats for Northwestern. In the 200 fly, Jordan Wilimovsky has been Northwestern's top swimmer all year, but he will be concentrating on the mile on the meet's final day. This makes 200 backstrokers Alex Snarski and Grant Halsall the Wildcats to watch in that event.
INDIVIDUAL MEDLEY: Past Big Ten Championships have seen Northwestern focus more on the back, breast and butterfly events that the individual medleys. It will be likely to see Grant Halsall and Alex Snarski in the 200 race along with Jonathan Lieberman and Andrew Seitz in the 400 IM.
DIVING: Sophomore Andrew Cramer leads the way for Northwestern after setting school records on the 3-meter springboard and 10-meter platform one year ago. He is an absolute scoring threat for the Wildcats. Senior John Andrade has come on in his second year at Northwestern after transferring from Notre Dame and also is capable of making some noise this year. Sophomore Reed Dillon, who already has achieved his career-best on the platform this season, gives the Wildcats a trio of divers at the 2015 Big Ten Championships.
RELAYS: Led by the sprint prowess of Almog Olshtein and the power of Andy Jovanovic, Uula Auren and Mark Ferguson, Northwestern's medley relays have the ability to finish among the leaders at the Big Ten meet. Those swimmers and freshman Gage Kohner in the 200 and 400 free relays also give the Wildcats a formidable team in those races, while Charlie Cole is the undisputed leader of the 800 free relay.
For Northwestern's complete preview and notes package for the 2015 Big Ten Championships, download the .pdf at the top of this page.
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