Men's Swimmers Hit Summer Waters
June 17, 2002 | Men's Swimming & Diving
Several Wisconsin men's swimmers are competing this summer in preparation for the 2002 Phillips 66 National Championships, Aug 12-17, in Fort Lauderdale, Fla.
The Mel Zajac Jr., International Swim Meet, May 24-26, in Vancouver, British Columbia opened off-season competition for UW. The event lengths at the Mel Zajac were long-course meters. Pat Torpey, Matt Zuiderhof, Kevin Zakrzewski, Brian Neuman, Brink Ciferri, and Matt Marshall competed at the Mel Zajac. Marshall, Torpey, Zakrzewski and Zuiderhof combined to finish fourth in the 400 meter free relay.
Swimming in six events, Torpey took second in the 200 butterfly, sixth in the 100 fly and 10th in the 400 free. Marshall grabbed three top-five finishes, taking second in the 100 fly, third in the 50 fly and fourth in the 50 back, while Ciferri added four top-16 finishes in six events.
Neuman and Zakrzewski finished third and 12th, respectively, in the 200 breaststroke. Neuman and Zakrzewski also added ninth and 11th place finishes, respectively, in the 100 breast. Zakrzewski edged his teammate in the 50 breast, finishing seventh, one place better than Neuman.
Earlier this month, Chris Anderson, Tim Liebhold and Andrew Ackley joined Marshall, Ciferri and Zakrzewski for the 2002 Charlotte UltraSwim, June 6-9. The UltraSwim, also measured in long-course meters, is part of the USA Swimming 2002 Grand Prix Series, which consists of five events.
Marshall finished fifth in the 100 fly and seventh in the 50 free, while in the 100 free, Anderson topped Marshall's 15th-place finish touching in at 13th. Ackley hit the long distances, swimming in the 800 and 1500 free, finishing 16th and 25th, respectively.
Liebhold participated in five events, taking seventh in the 100 back, 10th in the 400 IM, 11th in the 200 IM and 12th in the 200 back. Ciferri took eighth in the 400 IM.
Before nationals, the Badgers will compete in one other 2002 Grand Prix Series event, the Janet Evans Invitational, July 18-21, in Los Angeles.
Based on performances at the national championships, athletes will be selected to represent the United States at the 2002 Pan Pacific Championships, the 2003 World Championships, the 2003 World University Games and the 2003 Pan American Games.
More information on these summer events and complete results can be found via usa-swimming.org.
