UVa Swimmers Faring Well At World Championship Trials
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April 4, 2005
INDIANAPOLIS, Ind. – University of Virginia swimmers are having great success through the first three days of competition at the World Championship Trials, which are being held April 1-6 at IU Natatorium. Three current team members, along with a former swimmer, have advanced to “A” finals. The World Championship Trials, which are being held in long course meters, determine the rosters for the USA’s World Championship team and the World University Games team.
Fourth-year Michael Raab (Rockville, Md./Walter Johnson) has turned in the top performance by a Virginia swimmer as he was the runner-up in the 200-meter butterfly with a time of 1:58.79. He finished just eight hundredths of a second behind Davis Tarwater. Raab was also second in the preliminaries of the 200 fly with a time of 2:01.15.
First-year Pat Mellors (Pittsburgh, Pa./Central Catholic) placed fourth in the finals 400-meter individual medley as he touched in a time of 4:21.79. Mellors was second in the prelims with his time of 4:22.54.
Third-year Brielle White (Philadelphia, Pa./Springside School) placed seventh in the finals 100-meter backstroke with a time of 1:02.82. She was also seventh in the preliminary competition with a time of 1:03.21.
Current volunteer assistant coach and former UVa standout Ed Moses (Burke, Va./Lake Braddock) advanced to the finals of the 100-meter breaststroke where he finished fifth with a time of 1:02.21. Moses was second in the prelims with a time of 1:01.91. He is also scheduled to swim the 200-meter breast on Tuesday (April 5).
Second-year John Millen (Lilburn, Ga./Parkview) won “B” final of 400-meter freestyle with a time of 3:55.62 to finish ninth overall. He clocked a time of 3:57.98 in the prelims. Millen was also 33rd in the 200-meter free with a time of 1:53.81. Millen will also compete in the 1500-meter freestyle on Tuesday (April 5).
Second-year Stefan Hirniak (Highlands Park, N.J./Princeton Day) was 17th in the prelims of the 400 free with a time of 4:01.01 and was 39th in the 200 free in a time of 1:54.43.
In addition to Moses, first-year Ryan Hurley (Potomac, Md./Georgetown Prep) will compete in the 200-meter breaststroke on Tuesday.
The 26-member USA rosters for both the World Championships and World University Games will be announced on April 7. Event winners automatically qualify for the World Championships. With his second-place performance in the 200 fly, Raab has an excellent chance of making the USA’s World Championships roster. The swimming portion of the 2005 World Championships will be held July 24-31, in Montreal, Canada, while the 2005 World University Games will be held in Izmir, Turkey, August 11-21, 2005.