Rex and Pelltier named co-Divers of the Year as Men's Swimming & Diving wins 10th straight OAC Championship
By: Andrew Korba
AKRON -- Senior Kyle Rex and freshman Tim Pelltier were named co-OAC Divers of the Year as the Ohio Northern men's swimming & diving team captured its 10th consecutive OAC Championship on Saturday evening at the University of Akron's Ocasek Natatorium.
Northern finished with 935 points for the team title.
Mount Union was second with 673.5 points and John Carroll finished third with 481 points.
"This was a challenging year for us," said head coach Peggy Ewald. "We lost some key contributors, but others stepped in to fill the holes and handled it well. We had another target on our back this year, but we responded to get another title."
In total, the Polar Bears won six individual titles and all five relay events during the weekend.
Pelltier won the 1-meter diving, posting a score of 392.55 and Rex finished right behind in second with 379.25 points, earning All-OAC honors.
Rex won the 3-meter diving on Friday and Pelltier finished second for All-OAC honors.
The 400 free relay team of senior John Beaschler, sophomore Mitchell Murphy, freshman Eric Chen and freshman Logan Pfeifer closed out the meet with a win in 3:05.43.
Senior Jordan Breitigam captured his third straight OAC title in the 200 fly, surpassing the NCAA "B" Cut in 1:49.56.
Freshman John Raker earned All-OAC honors in the 200 fly, finishing second in 1:53.78, which also surpassed the NCAA "B" Cut.
Pfeifer tied the school record in the 100 free, notching a second place finish in 46.32 for All-OAC accolades.
Junior Jason Luthman and junior Spencer Franzoi each earned All-OAC honors in the 200 breast, touching in second and third in 2:09.09 and 2:09.99, respectively.
"This was a decade of excellence," added Ewald. "It was great to see everyone out supporting this team. We will continue to have a target on our backs and will need to keep on competing at a high level."