Ball State University
Miami
Men?s Swim & Dive Falls To Miami On Senior Day
February 13, 2016 | Men's Swimming and Diving
MUNCIE, Ind. - The Ball State men's swimming and diving team rounded out the regular season as it welcomed Mid-American Conference foe Miami Saturday afternoon. Senior Cole Smith was honored prior to the start of the meet in the team's annual Senior Day recognition session.
Although Ball State ultimately fell to Miami 171-127, Smith was dynamic against the RedHawks as he helped open the meet with a Cardinal win. Smith combined with junior Logan Kisinger, freshman Zach Reichle and junior Bradley Ridge to post a 1:36.03 final for first in the 200 medley relay.
The event was followed up by the 1000 freestyle in which junior JD Middleton led the Cardinals with a second place finish in a 10:03.38 fashion, while he was trailed by sophomore Isaac Walling who clocked a 10:04.72. Junior Andrew Carlson branched off the momentum to tally his own individual second place finish in the 200 freestyle immediately after with a 1:44.11 final.
It was in the 100 backstroke that sophomore Nate Slack marked an individual second place finish with a 54.86 final, while Kisinger earned a 56.20 time in the same event for third. Sophomore Zach Toman continued the Ball State success by following the event up with a second place finish in the 100 breaststroke (1:00.49), while Reichle trailed him for third (1:00.83).
Ball State got back on the event winning streak when junior Tanner Barton was first to touch the wall in the 200 butterfly. Barton clocked a 1:53.39 final, well ahead of Miami's Rob Newman who earned second with a 1:57.39 time.
Smith then earned his first individual event win on the day, second overall, by topping the 50 freestyle with a 21.80 time. He was narrowly trailed by junior Austin Green, who marked a 21.88 time for second. Smith then continued to lead the Cardinals by posting a third place finish in the 100 freestyle with a 48.45 time.
In the first diving break, freshman Lane Sawyer posted a new season-best score in one-meter diving action. The North Vernon, Ind. native earned a 232.58 mark for fourth, followed by fellow freshman Gabe Dean's 209.10 score for fifth. Later on in three-meter competition, Sawyer marked a season-best score of 214.88, while Dean earned a 200.85 score.
Middleton posted the top Ball State finish in the 200 backstroke with a 2:01.56 final for third, followed by Slack, who came in fourth with a 2:02.40 time. The event was then followed by the 200 breaststroke in which Toman earned third overall with a 2:16.05 final.
Carlson led Ball State in another event when he finished second in the 500 freestyle. The Oswego, Ill. native clocked a 4:50.46 final in the distance race, giving him two individual second place finishes on the day.
Barton boasted a second individual first place finish on the day when he earned a 51.02 final in the 100 butterfly event. The race was well-rounded for the Cardinals in that freshman Alec Tuthill marked a second place finish (51.77), followed by freshman Lucas McLain's fourth place finish (54.55) in the event.
In the final individual event on the day, Slack was the top timer for Ball State by touching the wall in 2:03.73 for a third place finish. He was narrowly followed by sophomore Jeremy Taylor who rounded the event out with a 2:04.36 final.
Ball State crushed the second relay and final event of the day by having the combination of Carlson, Barton, Smith, and Green openly earn the event win by nearly four seconds. The squad marked a 3:09.59 final, a new season-best for Ball State, to seal the deal.
The Ball State men's swimming and diving team will round out the 2015-16 season by taking on the Mid-American Conference Championships from March 2-5 in Ypsilanti, Mich.
For the most up-to-date news on Ball State men's swimming and diving action, follow @BallStateSports and @BallStateMSwim on Twitter.
Players Mentioned
