SAN ANTONIO – The 22nd-ranked Trinity men's swimming & diving team finished off a win in the 2023 Tiger Invitational with another successful finals session on Sunday.
The Tigers scored 1,101.5 points over the three-day event, holding off second-place University of Texas-Permian Basin and its team score of 1,021.5. Southwestern University finished third with 469 points to beat the 419 points scored by fourth-place Loyola University-New Orleans, with McMurry University, Austin College, and University of St. Thomas finishing in the final three places. Trinity won four of the seven events in today's action, finishing as the runner-up in two others, and collecting a total of 14 top-five performances over the day.
Konstantine Partalas (San Antonio, Texas / Reagan) got the day started on the right note with his performance in the 1-meter diving competition this afternoon. He tied for the gold medal in the event, finishing with 444.70 points. The Tigers had four of the top 10 performances in diving today, as
Max Rolla-Mullis (Ann Arbor, Mich. / Pioneer) finished sixth with 318.60 points,
Garrett Guillet (San Antonio, Texas / Churchill) finished with 294.10 points to take seventh, and
Ash Meckel (Austin, Texas / The Griffin School) was 10th with 244.45 points.
The 200 breaststroke was Trinity's best individual event as the Tigers claimed four of the top five spots in the race.
John Key (El Paso, Texas / Franklin) took first with a time of 2:01.85 and was a little less than a second ahead of
Kendal Southwell (Rio Rancho, N.M. / Calvert Online Academy), who finished second with a time of 2:02.62.
Brennan Jimenez (Fair Oaks, Calif. / Bella Vista) and
Caleb Del Rosario (Sudbury, Mass. / Lincoln-Sudbury) were fourth and fifth, respectively, finishing with times of 2:07.44 and 2:07.80.
Also snagging an individual victory was
Michael Kohl (Missouri City, Texas / Ridge Point), who won the 100 freestyle with a time of 44.68 seconds.
Nathaniel Early (Austin, Texas / Westwood) was third after touching the wall in 45.89 seconds.
Wiley Sikes (Pittsboro, N.C. / Woods Charter) took silver and
Daniel Itkins (Houston, Texas / The Village School) won the bronze medal in the 200 backstroke. Sikes recorded a time of 1:55.65 and Itkins was just 0.08 seconds behind his teammate.
In the 200 butterfly,
Nathan Perez (Alpharetta, Ga. / Johns Creek) was the runner-up with his time of 1:53.13.
William Walker (Houston, Texas / Westside) also made the podium with a time of 16:27.89 in the 1,650 free that was good for third place.
The meet concluded with the 400 free relay race and the Tigers made one last statement for the weekend by featuring three different teams in the top five of the finals. Perez, Early,
Trace Briones (San Antonio, Texas / Health Careers), and Kohl won the race with a time of 3:02.41. Third place went to the team of Walker,
Ryan O'Leary (Austin, Texas / Austin),
Chase Hays (Austin, Texas / Anderson), and Key that clocked in at 3:09.37. Itkins and Jimenez were joined by
William Kitto IV (Prairieview, La. / Catholic High School) and
John Fontenot (Austin, Texas / St. Andrew's) to finish fifth with a time of 3:11.57.
Coach Speak
"Winning this meet after coming up just short last year was a great accomplishment for these guys," revealed Head Coach
Cathleen Pruden. The whole weekend was a total team effort. It was fun to see our first-years compete in their first Tiger Invite, and to see our seniors lead the way and enjoy their final midseason meet."
Up Next
Trinity is done with competitions for the fall semester, but will continue training through the Winter Break. The Tigers return after the New Year with its final home meet of the 2023-24 season, hosting Austin College on January 6. It will also be Senior Day for the Tiger men's and women's senior swimmers and divers.
