The following is a press release courtesy of Missouri State:
Championship Central | Meet Notes | Follow @MoStateSwim
The Missouri State men’s swimming and diving team will pursue back-to-back conference titles when the Bears compete at the 2015 Mid-American Conference Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships beginning at 6 p.m. on Wednesday, March 4, at the SPIRE Institute in Geneva, Ohio.
The conference championships span over four days from Wednesday–Saturday, starting with Wednesday’s opening finals events beginning at 6 p.m. Action on Thursday and Friday consists of preliminary rounds starting at 10 a.m. and final rounds starting at 6 p.m., while the final day of the championships will begin with preliminary-round races at 10 a.m. and finals at approximately 4 p.m. Saturday.
Live results and video will be provided for the 2015 MAC Championships. Both can be found on the Championship Central page on mac-sports.com, which is also available on the Missouri State swimming and diving schedule page on MissouriStateBears.com.
Last Season’s MAC Championship
The Bears scored a team-total 833 points – a 151-point edge over runner-up Eastern Michigan – to capture their first title as a member of the Mid-American Conference at the 2014 MAC Men’s Swimming and Diving Championship from March 6-8 at Buffalo’s Alumni Arena Natatorium.
MSU captured its 19th overall conference championship by earning first place in 11 of the 20 events, including victories in all five relay races. The win gave MSU a men’s and women’s sweep of conference championships for the first time since 2008, when the women won the Missouri Valley Conference meet and the men took the Sun Belt Conference crown.
Bears sophomore Uvis Kalnins earned his first MAC Outstanding Swimmer of the Year award behind two conference record-breaking performances, junior Garrett Nevels was chosen as the MAC Outstanding Diver of the Year after setting the school record in the 1-meter dive and head coach Dave Collins was named Coach of the Year for the second-consecutive season following the 2015 championships.
Six MSU student-athletes were named to the All-MAC First Team and five others were tabbed to the second team.
Top Times in the MAC
The MSU men’s swimming and diving team has multiple individuals that have several top-10 times among Mid-American Conference swimmers this season, including three that have the top time in an event.
A total of 16 Bears have at least one top-10 time among MAC swimmers this season.
Paul Le, Uvis Kalnins and Miguel Davila make up the Bears’ lineup with fastest swims in the MAC.
Le has a top-10 time in seven events heading into the conference championships Wednesday, with his MAC-leading swims coming in the 100 back (47.96) and 200 back (1:43.50). He also boasts second-best times in the 50 free, 100 free and 200 IM. Kalnins owns three top times in the MAC which includes the 100 free (43.99), 200 IM (1:46.25) and 400 IM (3:48.45), while also having the second-fastest time this season in the 200 free (1:37.37). Davila also owns three MAC-leading times which include the 500 free (4:24.25), 1000 free (9:12.97), 1650 free (15:18.66) and the second fastest in the 400 IM (3:56.43).
Ethan Bresette holds four top-10 times in the MAC, followed by Will Frisbie with three. Vitalii Baryshok, Kacper Cwiek, Max Pratt, Caleb Schuermann, Jack Snow, Isaac Springer, Uldis Tazans and Brandon Weissman all have two top-10 times in the conference, while Christopher Heye and Isaac McKnight have one apiece.
NCAA Consideration Times
Three Missouri State swimmers currently have NCAA ‘B’ consideration times heading into the conference championships.
Paul Le boasts the 54th fastest swim in the country in the 200 back (1:43.50) for the highest top-NCAA ranking among MSU swimmers. His two other top-100 NCAA Division I times in the 100 back and 200 IM also fall under the ‘B’ standard. Uvis Kalnins’ best ranking comes in the 400 IM at 63rd, while his times in the 100 free and 200 IM also give him a chance to qualify for the NCAA Championships. Miguel Davila’s 500 free and 1650 free also met the ‘B’ cut, with his 1650 free currently ranked the 77th fastest time at the Division I level.
Bears diver Garrett Nevels has also already qualified for the 2015 NCAA Zone D Diving Championships in Iowa City, Iowa, from March 9-11. The senior has competed at the zone meet the previous three years.
Weekly Honors Update
Four Bears student-athletes have been named the MAC Swimmer of the Week throughout the duration of the 2014-15 season.
Paul Le and Uvis Kalnins each were recognized twice by the conference. Le picked up his first honors following the Show-Me Showdown – the first event of the season – and earned his second weekly award following MSU’s last event of the season, the Shamrock Invitational.
Kalnins won the award in the consecutive weeks on Nov. 3 and Nov. 10 following duals against Denver and Missouri.
Both Garrett Nevels and Miguel Davila also earned swimmer of the week honors once. Nevels was given the award on Oct. 20 after record-breaking performances in the Duel in the Pool against Drury on Oct. 16, while Davila had a standout performance at the Louisville Invitational to gain conference recognition on Nov. 24.
In the Rankings
The Missouri State men’s swimming and diving team has been a mainstay in the Division I CollegeSwimming.com team rankings throughout the 2014-15 season.
The CollegeSwimming.com Rankings are produced weekly throughout the season. These rankings are calculated from each team’s most recent meet result.
The Missouri State Bears reached as high as 26th in the rankings during the second time period following their performance at the Louisville Invitational from Nov. 21-23. The men’s squad currently ranks 42nd in both the first and second time periods among all Division I institutions for its dual versus Denver and its performance at the Louisville Invitational, respectively.
MSU has been prominent in the Division I Mid-Major poll during the entire season.
On the men’s side, the Bears were ranked 11th during the first time period from Sept. 15-Oct. 26 and reached as high as fourth in the second time period, before falling to 11th, in result of the Louisville Invite. MSU sits 12th in the third time period for its performance at the Texas A&M double dual against the nationally-ranked Aggies and Tennessee Volunteers.
Men’s Swimming and Diving First in Preseason Poll
The Missouri State men’s swimming and diving team was selected to finish first in the Mid-American Conference preseason coaches’ poll, announced Friday, Oct. 3.
Following the Bears’ 19th conference championship in 2013-14 – and first as a member of the MAC – MSU was chosen among the conference’s head coaches for this year’s title, ahead of the likes of Eastern Michigan, Buffalo, Miami, Southern Illinois, Ball State and Evansville.