Eagles Set to Defend Title as Host of MAC Championships

YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) -- After several weeks of training, the Eastern Michigan University men's swimming and diving team returns to the pool this week, March 2-5, as hosts of the 2016 Mid-American Conference Championships. The four-day event will take place in Jones Natatorium for the first time since 2010 as the Eagles look to defend last season's conference title.
Tickets for this week's event at Jones Natatorium can be purchased here.

FOLLOW ALL OF THE #MACTION: Keep tabs on all of the action at this week's meet through Twitter or live results. Live in-meet updates will be provided through the Mid-American Conference's Twitter account, @MACSports, as well as the Eastern Michigan University swimming and diving account, @EMUSwimDive.

COMPETING AS THE HOSTS: Eastern is set to host the MAC Championships for the second time in the past decade this week. The last time the Eagles competed as hosts of the conference meet came back in the 2009-10 season. That year, the Eagles claimed the top spot on the podium with a total of 773 points. The Green and White finished ahead of Buffalo (613.5) and Missouri State (587) while Justin Griggs was named Swimmer of the Meet.

LOOKING BACK ON LAST SEASON'S TITLE: The Eagles edged out Missouri State, 777.5-757.5 to claim the MAC crown at last year's conference meet. Mike Fisher paced the Eagles, winning the 200 Breast for the third consecutive season. EMU's other individual champion came in the 3-meter dive where then-sophomore Alex Chan posted a 409.95 to earn gold.
Following the meet, Logan Burton, Chan, Fisher, Andrew Henry, and Brian Moore were named to the All-MAC First Team while Cole Bateman, Erik Gissen, Kyle Lichtenberg, and Marcin Rzyski earned second team honors. Buck Smith was named the Diving Coach of the Year, his sixth award while coaching the men's team.

STACKING UP IN THE MAC: With the dual season behind them, the Eagles find themselves positioned in the top-five in several events in the Mid-American Conference's top times.
The Green and White hold two of the top-three ranked times in the 100 Backstroke this season with junior Cole Bateman's time coming in as the fastest this season. Bateman touched in with a NCAA 'B' cut time of 48.20 at the EMU Invitiational, Dec. 5, while freshman Tosh Kawaguchi's time at the event ranks as the third fastest in the MAC. The duo also appears in the 200 Backstroke where Kawaguchi holds the top time while Bateman ranks second and sophomore Logan Burton holds third. Also listed in the rankings is senior Andrew Henry. The senior freestyle specialist ranks fifth in the 200 Individual Medley, fourth in the 100 Freestyle, and third in the 200 Free.

RELYING ON THE RELAYS: Plenty of points are up for grabs in relays, and with where the Eagles' times stack up against the competition they stand a good chance to grab some of the highest-point totals. EMU holds the third fastest time in the 200 Medley Relay and second fastest finish in the 800 Free Relay ahead of Wednesday night's championship heats. The Green and White also hold the second slot in the 200 Free Relay. Eastern's highest relay rankings come in the 400 Medley Relay and 400 Free Relay where the Eagles are the top-seeded team heading into this week's races. The Eagles are the only team in the conference to have times ranked in the top-three in all five events.

IN SEARCH OF NO. 33: Last season's conference championship marked the 32nd time the Eagles won the MAC meet in program history. This week, the Green and White will look to top the conference for the 33rd time in EMU history. EMU will also be in search of its titles in back-to-back seasons for the first time since accomplishing the feat in 2013 after winning the meet in 2012.

HUNTER COOK NAMED MAC SWIMMER OF THE WEEK: Following a strong performance at the Ohio State Invitational, Feb. 13-14, sophomore swimmer Hunter Cook was recognized as the Mid-American Conference Swimmer of the Week, the conference announced today, Feb.16. The honor marks the first of Cook's career and the fourth time an Eagle has earned the award this season.
In the 400 Individual Medley, the Hilliard, Ohio product claimed third. Touching in with a time of 3:56.98, Cook bested swimmers from Ohio State, Kentucky, and WSU. Cook then finished runner-up in the 200 Butterfly after shaving more than five seconds off his fifth-ranked prelim time. Clocking in with a time of 1:51.50, Cook finished a full second ahead of the third-place finisher. Additionally, his time ranks as the seventh fastest in the MAC this season while his 400 IM time ranks fifth.

GREEN AND WHITE SHINE AT OSU INVITE: The Eastern Michigan University men's swimming and diving team's effort on day two of the Ohio State Invitational, Feb. 14, was highlighted by nine career-best times and a second place finish by sophomore Hunter Cook.
Cook led the way for the Eagles, shaving five seconds off his preliminary time to finish second in the 200 Butterfly. Clocking in with a career-best time of 1:51.50, Cook was second to only Ohio State's George Pappas.
In a highly competitive 200 Freestyle, the Eagles swept four of the top five spots in the 'B' final. Senior Miles MacDonald led the way, turning in the fastest race of his career and touching in with a time of 1:42.72.
Redshirt sophomore Lance Bergmann posted the Eagles second top-three finish, placing third in the 200 Breaststroke with a finals time of 2:02.97 while juniors Conner Finnigan and Chris Buzard also posted career-best times. Finnigan finished fifth while Buzard ranked eighth.
Four more career-bests were turned in by the Green and White in the 50 Free. Freshman Max Wilkinson led the way with a sixth-place finish, touching in with a career-best time of 21.27 while junior Kevin Moore, senior Dylan Crompton, sophomore Josh Kreider, freshman Ryan Current, and MacDonald all finished inside the top-14.

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Players Mentioned

Cole Bateman

Lance Bergmann

Logan Burton

Chris Buzard

Alex Chan

Hunter Cook

Dylan Crompton

Ryan Current

Conner Finnigan

Mike Fisher

Erik Gissen

Andrew Henry

Tosh Kawaguchi

Josh Kreider

Kyle Lichtenberg

Miles MacDonald

Brian Moore

Kevin Moore

Marcin Rzyski

Eastern Michigan Athletics