Michigan
Oakland
Wolverines Swarm Oakland in Season Opener
9/29/2017 8:43:00 PM | Men's Swimming & Diving
Site: Ann Arbor, Mich. (Canham Natatorium)
Score: Michigan 203, Oakland 91
Records: U-M (1-0), OU (0-1)
Next U-M Event: Saturday, Sept. 30 -- host Michigan Water Carnival (Canham Natatorium), 11 a.m.
ANN ARBOR, Mich. -- Sophomore Jacob Montague won three events to lead the University of Michigan men's swimming and diving team to an impressive 203-91 win over Oakland in the team's season opener on Friday (Sept. 29) at Canham Natatorium.
"What a great way to start the season," said head swimming and diving coach Mike Bottom. "The team has been training really well, and they've already put in a lot of work. I thought our energy on deck was great, and I think you saw that carry over into the performances tonight."
» Sophomore Jacob Montague won three events (100-yard breaststroke, 200-yard breaststroke, 200-yard IM), while Felix Auböck, Tristan Sanders and Miles Smachlo won two each.
» Senior Paul Powers won the 50-yard freestyle with an NCAA 'B' time of 20.04.
» Sophomore Jake Herremans and freshman Ross Todd split wins on one-and three-meter, each claiming NCAA Zone Diving qualifying scores on both springboards.
Coming off an impressive summer, Montague carried momentum over into the first meet, winning the 100-yard breaststroke (55.02), 200-yard breaststroke (2:00.36) and 200-yard IM (1:50.71). He was one of two men's swimmers to get NCAA 'B' times in the opener, the other being senior Paul Powers, who won the 50-yard freestyle (20.04).
The Wolverines dominated all evening, going 1-2-3-4 in three of the first four events. Joining Montague as repeat winners on Friday were sophomore Felix Auböck in the 500-yard freestyle (4:26.43) and the 1,000-yard freestyle (9:01.76), senior Tristan Sanders in the 100-yard backstroke (49.32) and 200-yard backstroke (1:48.78) and sophomore Miles Smachlo in the 100-yard butterfly (49.34) and 200-yard butterfly (1:49.55).
Sophomore Kai Williams used a furious kick down the last 25 yards to overtake junior Mokhtar Al-Yamani for the 200-yard freestyle, less than a tenth-of-a-second separating the two at the wall (1:38.14, 1:38.22). Another sophomore, James Jones, was the other individual winner in the pool, taking the 100-yard freestyle (44.68).
In the diving well, sophomore Jake Herremans and freshman Ross Todd each claimed a win: Herremans with a career-best performance on one-meter (351.60) and Todd on three-meter with a score that would've been a team-high last year (369.15). One meet in and both men have already achieved their NCAA Zone Diving qualifying scores on both the one- and three-meter springboards.
Michigan also swept the relays. The team of Sanders, Montague, junior Jon Burkett and Powers came in at 3:18.13 in the 400-yard medley relay, while Al-Yamani, sophomore Alex Martin, Sanders and Powers were clocked at 1:21.34 in the 200-yard freestyle relay. Of note in that final swim was freshman Luiz Gustavo Borges, who anchored the 'A' team in a team-best 19.69.
The Wolverines are back in the water tomorrow (Saturday, Sept. 30), hosting Oakland and Calvin College for the Michigan Water Carnival, a celebration of aquatic sports that blends swimming, diving and water polo. The meet begins at 11 a.m. Admission is free. [ Event Details ]
Players Mentioned
