The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

The independent newspaper of the University of Iowa community since 1868

The Daily Iowan

Men’s swimming splashes Spartans

Iowa+mens+swimmer+Jackson+Allen+competes+in+the+100+yard+IM+Thursday+night+October+15th%2C+2015+in+Iowa+City.+Allen+won+his+event+touching+in+at+51.55.+%28The+Daily+Iowan%2FKyle+Close%29
Iowa men’s swimmer Jackson Allen competes in the 100 yard IM Thursday night October 15th, 2015 in Iowa City. Allen won his event touching in at 51.55. (The Daily Iowan/Kyle Close)

The Iowa men’s swimming team dominated Michigan State.
By Blake Dowson

[email protected]

The Iowa men’s swimming and diving team put on a dominant performance on Oct. 16 against Michigan State in the Campus Recreation & Wellness Center in their first Big Ten meet of the year.

The Hawkeyes beat the Spartans, 188-91.

Hawkeye head coach Marc Long was happy with the team’s win but said the Hawks still have a lot to deal with.

“We got the win, that’s good,” Long said. “We saw some things that we needed to work on, but we need to see a lot more as we head into the deeper part of our schedule. I think we’re going to have battles through January with these guys, which is a good thing, to be battling for positions.”

Iowa tallied wins in 12 events, with seven swimmers earning top spots in 10 individual victories. The Hawkeyes also came out on top in both relays.

In the first event, the 200-medley relay of junior Jackson Halsmer, along with seniors David Ernstsson, Roman Trussov, and Jackson Allen got the scoring started for the Hawkeyes, registering a victory in 1:30.77.

Freshman Jack Smith earned his first of two victories in the 200 free, finishing in a time of 1:41.82. The Hawkeyes dominated the event overall, with junior Kyle Gannon finishing second, Ernstsson finishing third, and freshman Matt Kamin placing fourth.

Trussov gained Iowa’s first of what would become five-straight individual wins, touching the wall first in the 100 breast  stroke with a time of 56.30.

Next was a victory in the 200 fly for sophomore Jerzy Twarowski in 1:51.25, with freshman Sam Sauerbrei finishing right behind him in second place at 1:53.24.

The Hawkeyes again swept the top-four spots in the 50 free, with Allen earning his first individual win in a time of 20.32. Halsmer finished second for Iowa, followed by senior Chuck Holliday in third and junior Brandon Farnum in fourth.

Iowa’s dominance in the freestyle events was on display once again in the 100 free, in which Smith earned his second win in 45.74. Halsmer finished second for the Hawkeyes, with Ernstsson and Kamin finishing third and fourth.

Halsmer said the meet was a necessary step for the team.

“This weekend was definitely a good sign for the team,” he said. “It’s something to build on. We were confident coming in, but we knew this was a good true test to see where we were at.”

Senior Andrew Parker picked up Iowa’s fifth-straight win in the 200 backstroke, winning in a time of 1:51.25.

The Hawkeyes finished the meet as strongly as they started, winning the final four events of the night.

In the final event of the night, the Hawkeye relay team of Kamin, Farnum, Gannon, and sophomore RJ Hemmingsen won in 3:01.29.

Iowa also swept the top three spot in the 3-meter diving competition. Junior Andrew Hull came away with the victory, followed by junior Brandis Heffner in second and senior Addison Boschult in third.

The Hawkeye coaching staff used the meet against Michigan State as another feeler for them, to try to figure out question marks in the lineup.

The young Hawkeye swimmers are being moved around to see where they fit.

“Overall, it’s important to get the victory, but individually it’s nice to see them step up and win,” Long said. “With a young bunch like this, we are putting them in different positions, different relays, and different events in some instances just to see how they respond.”

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