Eastern Michigan Athletics
Eastern Michigan University
Northwestern
Men's Swimming and Diving Overtakes Northwestern in Season Opener
10/11/2017 5:26:00 PM | M. Swim & Dive
The Eagles posted eight first-place finishes en route to the victory
YPSILANTI, Mich. (EMUEagles.com) - The Eastern Michigan University men's swimming and diving opened its season against Northwestern University at Jones Natatorium, Oct. 11. With eight first-place finishes, including three wins by junior Tosh Kawaguchi (Cary, N.C.-Cary), the Eagles overtook the Wildcats, 153-141, in a comeback finish.
"This meet has always been a great rivalry for us and we have had some exciting dual meets through the years," said Head Coach Peter Linn. "It's always fun to beat a Power 5 team. I was especially happy with the way the team responded being down early and racing themselves back into the picture and then have enough points for victory before the final event."
Trailing Northwestern by 22 points, Eastern notched several points after grabbing two of the top-three spots in the 200 Freestyle behind junior Jake Tyson (Ipswich, England-Northgate) and sophomore Alex Arrieta (Miami, Fla.-Doral Academy Center).
In the 100 Backstroke, Kawaguchi snagged his first top-finish of the day with a time of 49.37. Right on his heels was junior Ricky Perez (Greenfield, Wis.-Greenfield) who tied a Wildcat for second place at 50.50.
As they did in the 200 free, the Eagles grabbed the two of the top-three spots in the 100 Breaststroke. Taking charge for the Green and White were sophomore Matthew Tsenkov (Sofia, Bulgaria-General Vladmir Stoychev) and freshman Ben Brooks (Avon, Ohio-Avon) placing second and third, respectively.
Senior Logan Burton (Chesapeake, Va.-Hickory) and sophomore Parker Saladin (Buchanan, Mich.-Buchanan) provided the Eagles with a 1-2 punch in the 200 Butterfly. In a race of milliseconds, Burton touched in with a time of 1:50.03 with Saladin coming in at 1:50.37.
After Northwestern swept the 50 free, Tyson got the Eagles back on track with a first-place finish in the 100 free.
Kawaguchi earned his second first-place finish of the day in the 200 back, following up Tyson's win, touching in at 1:47.93, while sophomore Matan Segal (Lehavin,Israel-Hof HaSharon) rounded out the top-three.
After freshman Ben Gingher (Boalsburg, Pa.-State College Area) and Tsenkov tied for third in the 200 breast, Arrieta tied a Wildcat at 4:42.95 in the 500 free for third.
Eastern earned its first sweep of the day in the 100 fly. Taking the lead from the start, Burton touched in at 48.99, while sophomore Matthew Martin (Brecksville, Ohio-Brecksville Broadview Heights) and senior Connor Johnson (Fort Bragg, N.C.-Terry Sanford) followed behind at 50.55 and 50.59, respectively.
In the final individual event, the Green and White expanded its points lead after Kawaguchi and Perez snagged the top two spots. Kawaguchi took the lead in the first 50 yards and never looked back, touching in at 1:51.24, while Perez followed at 1:53.57.
The Eagles closed out the swimming events with a second place finish in the 200 free relay consisting of Johnson, Burton, sophomore Mark Krusinski (Brecksville, Ohio-Brecksville Broadview Heights), and Segal.
On the springboard, senior Peter Rusenas (Naperville, Ill.-Naperville Central) and freshman Al'x Pierre (London, Ontario-St. Thomas Aquinas) each posted first-place finishes. Rusenas claimed first on the 3-meter with a score of 309.16, while Pierre finished first on the 1-meter with a score of 272.62.
Eastern Michigan hits the road to take on Kentucky, Oct. 14. Action is slated to begin at 1 p.m. in Lexington, Ky.
EMU Individual Results
1000 Free
4. Tanner Olmos 9:51.06
5. Corey Smith 9:55.39
6. Jacob Ehrman 10:18.63
200 Free
2. Jake Tyson 1:42.23
3. Alex Arrieta 1:42.77
6. JF Murphy 1:45.78
7. Chris O'Shea 1:46.97
8. Gus Maxwell 1:47.64
100 Back
1. Tosh Kawaguchi 49.347
t2. Ricky Perez 50.50
5. Matan Segal 51.66
100 Breast
2. Matthew Tsenkov 57.22
3. Ben Brooks 57.29
5. Ben Gingher 58.13
6. Aaron Hendry 59.27
200 Fly
1. Logan Burton 1:50.03
2. Parker Saladin 1:50.37
4. Matthew Martin 1:51.54
5. Josh Kreider 1:56.27
50 Free
4. Carter Swift 21.43
5. Connor Johnson 21.51
6. Alec Hoch 21.71
7. Mark Krusinski 21.97
8. Andrew Torres 22.05
3-meter
1. Peter Rusenas 309.16
2. Al'x Pierre 295.28
3. Noah Galluzzo 244.50
100 Free
1. Jake Tyson 46.29
4. Carter Swift 46.93
6. Alec Hoch 47.62
8. Andrew Torres 48.38
9. Max Wilkinson 49.50
200 Back
1. Tosh Kawaguchi 1:47.93
3. Matan Segal 1:50.73
5. Ricky Perez 1:53.18
7. Corey Smith 1:57.70
200 Breast
t3. Ben Gingher 2:06.49
t3. Matthew Tsenkov 2:06.49
6. Aaron Hendry 2:11.39
500 Free
t3. Alex Arrieta 4:42.95
5. Parker Saladin 4:45.14
6. Tanner Olmos 4:50.65
7. JF Murphy 4:51.16
8. Jacob Ehrman 4:54.02
100 Fly
1. Logan Burton 48.99
2. Matthew Martin 50.55
3. Connor Johnson 50.59
7. Chris O'Shea 51.35
8. Mark Krusinski 52.34
1-meter
1. Al'x Pierre 272.52
2. Peter Rusenas 264.75
3. Noah Galluzzo 240.74
200 IM
1. Tosh Kawaguchi 1:51.24
2. Ricky Perez 1:53.57
4. Ben Brooks 1:54.91
8. Jake Tyson 1:57.82
9. Parker Saladin 2:00.30
Players Mentioned
