Sophomore Emil LaSida, senior Ethan Chuang, sophomore William Froass, and sophomore Mason Bencurik of the Case Western Reserve University men's swimming team set a school record in the 200 Medley Relay at the two-day Midwest Invitational hosted by the University of Chicago at the Myers-McLoraine Pool inside the Ratner Athletic Center in Chicago.
The quartet turned in a time of 1:29.51 in a time trial, breaking their previous record of 1:29.64 from the University Athletic Association Championships last weekend. The time, which is an NCAA B Cut, ranks 16th in Division III.
Overall, the Spartans placed first out of five teams competing in the meet with 655.5 points. The CWRU women's swimming team placed first out of four teams with 622.0 points.
Overall, the Spartans placed first in seven events and second in an additional nine events.
The 200 Free Relay of seniors Neeraj Javadekar and Alex Sorensen, sophomore Zach Halsey, and junior Adam Knorz won the race in 1:26.72. Halsey teamed with junior Zach Toothman and sophomores Enzo Wood and Tyler Ahten to win the 400 Free Relay in 3:13.11. Sorensen added a first-place finish in the 400 Medley Relay with sophomore Julian Kim and juniors Austin Sung and Cole Davin in 3:36.83.
For the women's team, both the 200 Medley Relay of first-year swimmers Asma Khan and Lillian Paley, sophomore Kailyn Smith, and junior Caroline Schlessman, and the 400 Medley Relay of Khan, Schlessman, Paley, and junior Nara Lee placed first in their events. The shorter relay finished in 1:51.65, and the longer relay recorded a time of 4:03.73. Smith added a win in the 200 Fly in 2:09.15 and a second-place finish in the 100 Fly in 58.21 seconds, and sophomore Lauren Valentine placed first in the 200 Back in 2:07.00.
Schlessman placed second in the 100 Breast in 1:08.19, Khan added a second-place finish in the 100 Back in 58.70 seconds, and Lee was second to touch the wall in the 100 IM in 1:02.39.
Ahten added a pair of runner-up finishes in backstroke events, placing second in the 100 Back in 52.61 seconds and in the 200 Back in 1:54.90. Wood touched the wall second in the 200 Free at 1:43.55, and Bencurik placed second in the 100 Free in 45.52 seconds. In the 200 Fly, junior Jiro Batt was the second to touch the wall, finishing in 1:54.50.
The Midwest Invitational is the last meet of the regular season for the Case Western Reserve swimmers. Swimming selections to the 2024 NCAA Division III Men's and Women's Swimming and Diving Championships will be announced on Wednesday, February 28 by 8 p.m. in a release on ncaa.com. Spartan divers will compete in the NCAA Diving Zone Regional Meet on Friday, March 1 and Saturday, March 2 at Denison University to determine postseason qualifiers.
