ANN ARBOR, Mich. – The 23rd-ranked Wisconsin men's swimming and diving team ended the second day of the Big Ten Conference Championships in fourth place in the team standings after seven events. The Badgers have 341 points. No. 8 Ohio State leads with 487 points, followed by No. 6 Indiana with 478 points and No. 17 Michigan with 403 points.
Wisconsin crowned one champion as junior Jake Newmark claimed his second consecutive Big Ten title in the 500 free. The Badgers also earned a silver medal in the 400 medley relay.
Newmark garners gold
Newmark entered the finals of the 500 freestyle with the day's second-fastest time but rallied in the final, hitting wall in 4 minutes, 12.96 seconds for the win. The Garden City, New Jersey, native earned an NCAA "B" cut to mark his second-straight conference win in the event. Sophomore Yigit Aslan finished ninth in 4:17.33 followed by Zach Ward, who took 15th in 4:22.17. Two Badgers also advanced to the C final of the 500 free as Jack Leuthold placed 19th in 4:22.42 and Jude Williams placed 21st in 4:24.99.
Relay wins silver
While Newmark kicked off the day with a win, the Badgers finished off the night, picking up a silver medal in the 400 medley relay. Newmark, Wes Jekel, Will Myhre, and Constantin Bench combined to hit the wall in 3:06.25 to garner an NCAA "B" cut. Their time is also the third-fastest ever in program history
Other Top Finishers
Senior Jekel also scored in an individual event, earning a ninth-place finish in the 200 individual medley in 1:43.99. He was followed up by Truman te Duits, who placed 15th in a personal best time of 1:45.80, which is almost three seconds faster than his previous best.
In the 50 freestyle, sophomore Ben Wiegand was the top finisher for Wisconsin, earning a seventh-place finish and a personal best time of 19.59. His mark is now tied for the third-fastest time in program history. Andrew Benson followed up with an 11th-place finish, hitting the wall in 19.62, which is now fourth all-time for UW.
Junior Daniel Muller scored on the one-meter diving board, finishing 11th with 327.90 points
Up next
The third day of the Big Ten championships kicks off on Friday from Canham Natatorium on the University of Michigan campus. Prelims begin at 9 a.m. CT with finals starting at 4:30 p.m. CT. The championship is streamed live on B1G+.
Team scores
1. Ohio State - 487
2. Indiana - 478
3. Michigan - 403
4. Wisconsin - 341
5. Minnesota - 280
6. Purdue - 249
7. Northwestern - 210
8. Penn State - 204
500 Freestyle
1. Jake Newmark- 4:12.96
9. Yigit Aslan- 4:17.33 (B)
15. Zach Ward- 4:22.17 (B)
19. Jack Leuthold- 4:22.42
21.Jude Williams- 4:24.99
200 IM
9. Wes Jekel- 1:43.99 (B)
15. Truman Teduits- 1:45.80 (B)
21. Dominik Mark Torok- 1:46.91
50 Free
7. Ben Wiegand- 19.59 (B)
11. Andrew Benson- 19.62 (B)
17. Cooper Scharff- 19.92 (B)
20. Isaac Casey-Hrenak - 20.14
1-meter diving
10. Daniel Muller- 327.90 points
400 medley relay
2. Wisconsin A- 3:06.26 (Jekel, Myhre, Bensch, Newmark)
