Men's Swimming & Diving starts 2011 season with dominating 169-74 win over John Carroll

By: Jake Schwerer

ADA — The Ohio Northern men's swimming and diving team kicked off the season with a 169-74 home victory over John Carroll on Saturday afternoon at the ONU Sports Center.

ONU is 1-0 overall and 1-0 in the Ohio Athletic Conference, while John Carroll falls to 0-1 overall and in the conference.

The Polar Bears won nine of 13 events on their way to victory.

Senior Michael Schultz led the way for the Polar Bears earning two individual first-place finishes. He took first in the 1000 Free and the 200 Free (10:17.56 and 4:53.51, respectively).

Senior Nick Meyer won the 1-meter diving with a score of 237.70, and junior Albert Schmidt won the 3-meter diving with a score of 241.05.

Junior Drew Keriazes won the 100 Breast with a time of 1:00.96, while senior Joey Bechtel was the fastest in the 100 Back with a time of 58.02.

Junior Marc Anderson came in first in the 100 Fly in 53.03.

Sophomore Jordan Breitigam earned the top spot in the 200 IM, finishing in 2:02.83.

The men's 200 Medley Relay team consisting of Bechtel, Keriazes, Breitigam and Anderson combined to win in 1:39.73.

Head coach Peggy Ewald said following the meet: "I was pleased with the strong finishes by everyone on the team,, especially the younger athletes. We have some things to tweak and we'll also be working on fitting in the freshman with our returners. Overall, I am very proud of the way we took to heart what we worked on all preseason."

Ohio Northern will head to Wilmington on Friday for a 6 p.m. dual meet.