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March 27, 2003
AUSTIN, Texas – University of Virginia first-year swimmer Fran Crippen (Conshohocken, Pa./Germantown Academy) finished fifth in the finals of the 500 freestyle Thursday (March 27) at the 2003 NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships at the Jamail Texas Swimming Center to garner first-team All-America honors. Third-year Ian Prichard (Ventura, Calif./Buena) won the consolation final of the 500 free, while third-year Luke Anderson (Charlottesville, Va./Bolles School) finished 12th in the 50 free. Both swimmers were honorable mention All-America accolades with their performances.
After the first day of competition, and six of 21 events, UVa stands in 13th place with 40 points. Arizona is 12th with 41 points and Michigan is 11th with 42 points. Auburn leads the 2003 NCAA Championships with 206 points and Stanford is second with 121, followed by California (115).
Crippen posted a time of 4:16.48 in finishing fifth in the finals of the 500 free and earned his first All-America certificate. Crippen’s time is the second fastest in the 500 free by a UVa swimmer. He was seventh in the prelims of the 500 free with a time of 4:17.72.
Prichard won the consolation final of the 500 free for the second consecutive year. He was ninth overall with a time of 4:18.04, which was the sixth fastest time of the evening session.
Anderson captured honorable mention All-America accolades with his 12th-place performance in the 50 free. He posted a time of 19.82 in the consolation final after registering a time of 19.76 in the prelims. Anderson set the school record in the 50 free with a time of 19.64 with his leadoff leg of UVa’s 200 free relay during the preliminaries.
Virginia earned honorable mention All-America honors with an 11th-place finish in the 400 medley relay. The Cavaliers recorded a time of 3:14.26, which is the third fastest time in school history. Third-year Luke Wagner (Greenwood, Colo./Regis Jesuit) swam the backstroke leg, followed by Anderson in the breaststroke. Second-year Michael Raab (Rockville, Md./Walter Johnson) swam butterfly with Kerpelman anchoring the relay in the freestyle.
Several other Virginia swimmers competed in the prelims during the first of three days of competition. In the 500 free, fourth-year Dan DeMarco (Great Neck, N.Y./Great Neck South) was 31st with a time of 4:24.80. Third-year Jonathan Haag (Ashland, Ohio/Ashland) and Kerpelman competed in the prelims of the 50 free and tied for 33rd in a time of 20.20. It was a career-best time for Haag. In the 200 individual medley, second-year Bo Greenwood (Manakin, Va./Goochland) placed 28th with a time of 1:48.74.
The 2003 NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships continue Friday with preliminaries beginning at 11:00 a.m. Central Time. Friday’s finals begin at 7:00 p.m. CT.