Ball State University Athletics
Men?s S&D Travels To EMU For MAC Championships
March 02, 2010 | Men's Swimming and Diving
MUNCIE, Ind. - - Led by its seven-member senior class, the Ball State men's swimming & diving team returns to the pool Thursday when it travels to Ypsilanti, Mich., to open competition in the 2010 Mid-American Conference Championships at Eastern Michigan's Jones Natatorium.
The league's premier event returns to campus sites for the first time since 2007, as the past two years the MAC combined with the Sun Belt Conference for a two-league championship meet in Nashville, Tenn.
This year's three-day meet (Thursday-Saturday) features Ball State, Buffalo, Eastern Michigan and Miami along with the MAC's three new affiliate members in men's swimming & diving - - Evansville, Missouri State and Southern Illinois - - who joined the league following a stint in the Sun Belt Conference. All three teams will be part of the league through at least 2015.
Action in the meet begins at 12 p.m. Thursday, with prelims in the 500 freestyle, 200 individual medley, 50 freestyle and one-meter diving. Finals being at 7 p.m. Thursday night, starting with the 200 freestyle relay.
The Cardinals are poised to make big news on the first day of competition, with two swimmers ranked among the top six in the league in the 50 freestyle. Seniors Austin Laska (Palos Park, Ill./A.A. Stagg H.S.) and Ben Battjes (Elkhart, Ind./Elkhart Memorial H.S.) have battled back-and-forth for the team lead in the event, with Laska currently ranking fifth (21.15) in the MAC and Battjes sixth (21.23).
Another senior looking to make an impact on the team score is Ben Karwoski (Bluffton, Ind./Bluffton H.S.). Karwoski enters the week as the team's top swimmer in 200 freestyle (1:46.00), 500 freestyle (4:47.33/17th MAC), 1000 freestyle (9:59.16/14th MAC) and 1650 freestyle (16:48.55/11th MAC). In addition, his time of 1:56.86 in the 200 butterfly ranks second on the team. Karwoski also looks to build on the succeed of his wife, Emily Karwoski (Zionsville, Ind./North Central H.S.), who posted three school records at last week's MAC Women's Swimming & Diving Championships.
Underclassmen with top eight hopes include sophomore Chris Krupa (Indianapolis, Ind./Pike H.S.) who ranks 10th in the league in both the 100 (51.64) and 200 (1:56.83) butterfly events, and freshman diver Quinton Rodriguez (Rockford, Mich./Rockford H.S.) who is 10th on the three-meter diving board (281.55).
Ball State in the MAC Rankings
50 Freestyle
5th Austin Laska - 21.15
6th Ben Battjes - 21.23
100 Freestyle
18th Devon Hill - 47.29
19th Ben Battjes - 47.64
500 Freestyle
17th Ben Karwoski - 4:47.33
20th Andrew Hostetler - 4:48.38
1000 Freestyle
14th Ben Karwoski - 9:59.16
15th Mark Golden - 10:04.35
16th Adam Dale - 10:08.08
18th Nicholas Stevens - 10:11.30
1650 Freestyle
11th Ben Karwoski - 16:48.55
12th Mark Golden - 16:55.07
15th Nicholas Stevens - 17:20.20
17th Ethan Hall - 17:39.14
18th Ryan Gordyan - 18:12.16
100 Backstroke
16th Adam Dale - 53.35
200 Backstroke
12th Adam Dale - 1:54.10
100 Breaststroke
11th Gavin McNeeley - 58.88
200 Breaststroke
16th Gavin McNeeley - 2:12.52
20th David Wood - 2:15.18
100 Butterfly
10th Chris Krupa - 51.64
200 Butterfly
10th Chris Krupa - 1:56.83
11th Ben Karwoski - 1:56.86
19th Andrew Hostetler - 1:59.36
400 Individual Medley
11th Andrew Hostetler - 4:13.73
20th Tony DeBrota - 4:21.74
200 Freestyle Relay
5th Ball State - 1:25.06
400 Freestyle Relay
5th Ball State - 3:09.51
800 Freestyle Relay
6th Ball State - 7:18.89
200 Medley Relay
5th Ball State - 1:35.29
400 Medley Relay
3rd Ball State - 3:25.54
1-Meter Diving
15th Quinton Rodriguez - 266.45
16th Jeremy Whited - 227.10
19th Chris Behrle - 194.25
3-Meter Diving
10th Quinton Rodriguez - 281.55
11th Jeremy Whited - 260.55
14th Chris Behrle - 213.53
Players Mentioned
