Virginia Men Finish Second at ACC Championship Meet

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Feb. 24, 2007

CHAPEL HILL, N.C. – The Virginia men’s swimming and diving team had its string of eight consecutive ACC Championships broken as it finished second at the 2007 ACC Championship Meet at Koury Natatorium on the campus of North Carolina. The Cavaliers scored 616.5 points over the four-day meet, as Florida State won the title with 714 points.

On the final day of competition, the Cavaliers had two individual champions. Vanja Rogulj (Zagreb, Croatia) swam a NCAA `A-cut’ time of 1:56.57 to win the 200 breaststroke for the fourth consecutive year. Ryan Hurley (Potomac, Md.) was second and PJ Sullivan (Franklin, Mass.) was fifth, each with NCAA `B-cut’ times.

In the 200 butterfly, Stefan Hirniak (Highland Park, N.J.) took the title in a NCAA `B-cut’ time of 1:45.36. Pat Reams (North Easton, Mass.) took third in a time of 1:46.54, while Lee Roberston (Waynesboro, Va.) was seventh in a time of 1:48.47.

Vanja Rogulj (Zagreb, Croatia) won the 100 breaststroke title for the third consecutive year, winning in a career best 53.14. Hurley took third in the event in a `B-cut’ mark of 54.93 and PJ Sullivan (Franklin, Mass.) was fourth in 55.42.

In the 1650 free, John Millen (Lilburn, Ga.) was fourth with a NCAA `B-cut’ time of 15:11.08. Virginia had three finalists in the 200 backstroke, as Bjorn Falk (Wilton, N.H.) was second, Pat Mellors (Pittsburgh, Pa.) was third, and Bryan Stahl (Woodlands, Texas) was eighth.

Following the Cavaliers in the standings was North Carolina in third and Virginia Tech in fourth. As a result of finishing ahead of the Hokies, the Cavaliers take men’s swimming point in the Commonwealth Challenge, presented by Comcast. The Cavaliers now lead the competition by a score of 9.5-5.5.

The meet was broadcast online by ACC Select. The finals of each day of competition were broadcast and are archived on the website, www.accselect.com.