CEDAR RAPIDS, Iowa -- The first day of Liberal Arts, our swimming and diving championship meet, has been already an exciting meet. With nine Principians qualified for finals, it is predicted we will do well at our last meet before Nationals.
The men started the meet off well with the first event of the meet, the 200 Free relay. Colin Clark (SR), Tyler Loechner (SO), Andy Furbush (SO), and senior captain Will Crowley all swam great in this event. They finished with tie to the school record with the time of 1:29.05. They will be back and are currently in fourth. Jackson also did well in his event, the 500 free, and ended up getting a lifetime best 5:18.92. Furbush got back in the water and swam a seasonal best time of 2:04.22 in the 200 IM. He will be back tonight as he is currently 12th. Zach Harmon (SO) also did great in the 200 IM and got a season best time of 2:30.05. Crowley and Clark will be back tonight for the 50 free with their lifetime best times of 22.54 (Crowley) and 22.73 (Clark). Brent Bennett (FR) and Casey Towle (FR) both got lifetime best time in the 50 free. Bennett got 24.61 and Towle got 26.36. Loechner got a lifetime best time for his 100 backstroke lead off in the 400 Medley relay. His time was 54.72. Loechner, Crowley, Furbush, and Clark all helped their 400 medley relay get 4th. They will be back tonight. Matt Poulos will also be back tonight after getting 6th place in the 1 meter 11 dives with his score of 253.10.
Everyone is doing really well. Stay tuned for this evenings results.
Day 1 – Finals
The men ended their first day at the Liberal Arts swimming and diving championship meet with 88 points and 5th place. They had some great swims and dives.
One of the best swims of the day was when Colin Clark (SR), Tyler Loechner (SO), Andy Furbush (SO), and Will Crowley (SR) broke their old school record for the 200 freestyle with a time of 1:27.90. Later in the 500 free, Chip Jackson ended up getting 12th place with his lifetime best time of 5:13.71. He had an amazing finish in this race. Furbush later got a seasonal best in his 200 IM with 2:03.37. Matt Poulos got 5th today after completing his six dives on the 1 meter. His score was 278.85.
Tomorrow the men swimmers and divers will be trying to break more personal bests.
Day 2 – Prelims
After morning inspiration, there were excited conversations about the future races in the morning. Some expressed their love for a particular race and others explaining how well they were going to do in a race. These statements turned out to be true with another batch of amazing swims and dives.
For the first event of the day, the 200 medley relay, Tyler Loechner (SO), Will Crowley (SR), Andy Furbush (SO), and Colin Clark (SR) swam well again as a relay team. Their relay time of 1:39.56 put them up on the top ten for this event. The best part about it is that they are currently in 2nd place for this relay event and will be back tonight to try to get 1st. Loechner also did well in the 400 IM, getting a lifetime best time and on the top ten with his time of 4:25.98. We expect that when he comes back tonight to swim in finals for this race that he will do even better because he swam calm and strong during the morning. In the 400 IM, Zach Harmon (SO) did well and finished with a seasonal best time of 5:22.04. He will be back tonight at finals because he is an alternate and is 17th for this event. Furbush and Crowley also did well in the 100 fly. Furbush got in the top ten with his time of 53.30 and Crowley got a lifetime best time of 54.72. Both will be back for finals tonight because Furbush is in 5th and Crowley is in 9th. For the 200 free, Chip Jackson (SO) will be back tonight after getting 13th with his lifetime best time of 1:53.95. Casey Towle (FR) will also be back tonight because of his lifetime best time of 1:11.15 in the 100 breast. He place 17th and is an alternate. Loechner, Clark, and Brent Bennett (FR) all swam well in the 100 back. All three will be back tonight, with Loechner in 4th, Clark 12th with his seasonal best of 57.76, and Bennett 18th with his lifetime best time of 1:02.40. Matt Poulos is currently 4th in 3 meter 11 dives because of his lifetime best score of 267.57.
We have had some quite amazing swims and dives this morning. Tonight should be an excellent evening for more great swims and dives.
Day 2 – Finals
With more top ten times and lifetime bests, Principia College finished their 2nd day at Liberal Arts exceptionally.
Tyler Loechner (SO), Will Crowley (SR), Andy Furbush (SO), and Colin Clark (SR) started the evening off with an incredible fast time of 1:38.66 for the 200 Medley relay. This time lands them onto the top ten list again. Loechner also got on the top ten for the 400 IM. He got the time 4:19.54, beating the time 4:24.59 his brother set in 2003 for the 400 IM. Tyler Loechner's time is now the 2nd fastest in comparison to all current and past Principian male swimmers. Furbush finished 7th in the 100 fly and Crowley got a lifetime best 54.48. Loechner got 5th in the 100 back and Clark got a lifetime best and the top ten time of 56.60. Matt Poulos (SR) got 4th in the event of 3 meter 6 dives with the score of 267.01. The men's 800 free relay team ended the evening well and Zach Harmon got a lifetime best 2:11.98 for his 200 lead off for this relay.
Tonight was another day of superb swims. We look forward to see what Principia will do tomorrow.
Final Day – Prelims
Another great start to a day at Coe College. This is the last day and all the swimmers are excited to finish strong and get more personal bests.
Tyler Loechner (SO) did an amazing 200 backstroke swim. He got a lifetime best of 1:58.38 and is in the 1st place position for tonight's finals. Colin Clark (SR) will be back tonight for the 200 back but is in 12th place. He got a seasonal best of 2:06.08. Also in the 200 back, Brent Bennett (FR) got a lifetime best of 2:21.80. Will Crowley (SR) will be back tonight for the 100 free and is currently seated 12th. Zach Harmon (JR) got a seasonal best in the 100 free, 57.78. In the 200 breast, Casey Towle (FR) got a lifetime best of 2:38.40. He will be back tonight because he seated 15th. For placing 5th in the 200 fly, Andy Furbush (SO) will back tonight to try to improve his seasonal best time of 2:03.75. The 400 free relay team of Crowley, Clark, Furbush, and Loechner will be back tonight for getting 3rd during Prelims. Jackson got a lifetime best, 52.31, for his 100 free lead off in his 400 relay.
After getting some rest, we all will be back tonight to swim fast and finish the Liberal Arts Championship meet at Coe College.
Final day – Finals
The anticipation and excitement was high as we waited for the finals at the beginning of the Saturday evening. Their excitement led to swims that were impressive to watch.
Chip Jackson (SO) was looking forward to do better in the 1650 free for finals. This attitude led to him placing 12th and getting a new lifetime best 18:38.36. Tyler Loechner (SO) finished in 3rd place for the 200 back. Colin Clark (SR) also swam the 200 back. He got a season best of 2:05.70 and finishing 12th. Andy Fubush (SO) finished in 7th place for the 200 fly. Leading off the relay, Chip Jackson (SO) helped the men's 400 free relay time get a new top time of 3:19.32 with his lifetime best of 50.48. Loechner, Furbush, Clark were also part of the 400 free relay.
The men ended with multiple lifetimes, new school records, top ten times, and seasonal bests. They got 284 points from these swims and dives which landed them 5th place overall. Over the past season, we have learned a lot about each other, became a closer family, and have had amazing swims and dives. As the students left to go to their dorms, the coaching staff noticed that they all wore peaceful smiles. They must have been thinking about this season.
