Virginia Takes Lead After First Day Of Men's ACC Swimming And Diving Championships
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Feb. 27, 2003
CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The University of Virginia men’s swimming and diving team stands in first place with 246 points after the first day of competition at the 2003 Atlantic Coast Conference Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships Thursday (February 27) at Koury Natatorium on the campus of the University of North Carolina. The Cavaliers won four of six events, including all three individual swimming events, to grab the early lead.
Virginia, the four-time defending ACC champions leads after six events with 246 points, while Florida State is second with 206 points. North Carolina is third (145) with Georgia Tech right behind with 141 points. N.C. State is fifth (108), followed by Clemson (106), Maryland (72) and Duke (55).
In the meet-opening 200 free relay, the Cavaliers placed second to Florida State with the Seminoles clocking a winning time of 1:19.96. UVa’s foursome of third-years Luke Anderson (Charlottesville, Va./Bolles School), Jon Haag (Ashland, Ohio/Ashland) and Adam Kerpelman (Lutherville, Md./St. Paul’s School), and first-year Ethan McCoy (McMinnville, Ore./McMinnville) touched second in 1:20.12.
UVa earned its first victory of the 2003 ACC Championships in the 500 freestyle with first-year Fran Crippen (Conshohocken, Pa./Germantown Academy) registering a winning time of 4:18.20. His time bettered the NCAA automatic qualifying standard. It also marked the seventh consecutive year a Virginia swimmer has won the 500 free. Two-time 500 free champion and third-year Ian Prichard (Ventura, Calif./Buena) was fourth (4:20.89). Fourth-years Dan DeMarco (Great Neck, N.Y./Great Neck South) and Dan Zurowski (Woodbridge, Va./Bishop Ireton) also competed in the final, finishing sixth and eighth with times of 4:26.53 and 4:29.83, respectively. Second-year Michael Raab (Rockville, M.d./Walter Johnson) placed 10th with a time of 4:28.10.
Second-year Bo Greenwood (Manakin, Va./Goochland) grabbed his second consecutive 200 individual medley title with a winning time of 1:47.82. Fourth-year Guy Yimsomruay (Bangkok, Thailand/Germantown Academy) was the runner-up in a time of 1:48.42, while first-year Ryan Berg (Sudbury, Mass./Lincoln-Sudbury) was fourth (1:48.96). Third-year Andrew Pickett (Satellite Beach, Fla./Satellite) claimed the 15th spot with a time of 1:52.49.
Anderson, the 2002 ACC Swimmer of the Year, won the 50 freestyle for the second consecutive year as he touched in a time of 19.84 seconds. Kerpelman finished second with a time of 20.12, while Haag took eighth place (20.45).
In the three-meter diving competition, first-year Andrew Barber (Vienna, Va./Marshall) was the Cavaliers’ top finisher as he placed 12th. First-year Eric Kelley (Alexandria, Va./Mount Vernon) was 16th on the one-meter board.
Virginia concluded the first day of competition by winning the 400 medley relay with a time of 3:14.31. Wagner swam the opening backstroke leg, followed by fourth-year Jon Baird (Nashville, Tenn./Montgomery Bell Academy) in the breaststroke. Yimsomruay swam the butterfly leg with Anderson bringing home the title with his anchor freestyle leg.
The UVa men continue competition in the 2003 ACC Championships Friday (February 28). Preliminaries begin at 11:00 a.m. and finals commence at 7:00 p.m.