2025 Men’s NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships Day 3 Prelims Heat Sheet Well, Swimfanatics (and Divefanatics), we have arrived. It’s day 3 of the 2025 NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving Championship, and it’s the most exciting day on offer as a whopping six individual events are being held, so I hope you all have a long lunch break. Florida’s Josh Liendo kicks off his 100 fly title defense this morning, as the 100 fly has replaced the 400 IM at the top of the program. This change suits several swimmers, including FSU’s Michel Arkhangelskiy and Indiana’s Finn Brooks. Arkhangelskiy is seeded to make the A-finals in both the 100 fly and 100 back, as he is seeded 8th and 5th, respectively. The freshman will have his work cut out for him, however, as the 100 fly is as competitive as ever. Liendo’s 43.23 leads the way, but unlike last year, when he was the only swimmer entered under the 44.00 barrier, two others join him. Georgia’s Luca Urlando (43.62) and ASU’s Ilya Kharun (43.85) will occupy lane 4 in the other circle-seeded heats. It’s not going to be a walk in the park for the top three, however, as the rest of the field is littered with potential upsets. Dare Rose, 5th last year, ranks 10th. Virginia Tech’s Youssef Ramadan, 6th last year, sits tied at 14th, and last year’s runner-up Tome Frankel lurks in the most uncomfortable spot, tied for 16th with Texas first-year Kyle Peck. The 400 IM sees Rex Maurer begin his quest for his 2nd NCAA title, hot off the heels of his win in the 500 last evening. Maurer, like Liendo, has a comfortable margin, being seeded nearly 1.5 seconds ahead of his nearest competitor, OSU’s Tristan Jankovics. However, such is the depth of every event that is becoming somewhat repetitive; danger lurks around every corner. Baylor Nelson, the 3rd seed, has been faster this season than he was last year when he nabbed the bronze medal. If the 800 free relay was the opening round between Texas and Cal, then the 200 free is round 2. Texas came out swinging in the relay, with Luke Hobson swimming the 2nd fastest time ever. He is naturally the top seed and the only entrant under the 1:30.00 barrier, with his 1:29.34. Chris Guiliano will look to join his teammate under that mark and go 1-2. He is the 3rd seed with a time of 1:30.31. On paper, the biggest obstacle appears to be 50 free champ Jordan Crooks, who is ever so close to breaking that barrier, entering with a seed time of 1:30.00. Yet swimming is done on paper, and that is fortunate for Cal. Seeded to score no points this year, Cal’s Robin Hanson, Gabe Jett, Keaton Jones, and Jack Alexy all scored points last season, with Alexy taking 2nd last year in 1:29.75. Alexy and Jett were part of Cal’s NCAA record-breaking relay, where they went 1:30.02 (lead-off) and 1:29.16 (2nd), so they could easily both jump into the A-final. Indiana hasn’t been mentioned much, but the Hoosier come into a day in a big way with four swimmers seeded to score in the top 10 and six in the top 16. Finn Brooks leads the way as the #2 seed, sitting behind NCAA record holder Julian Smith. The pair are the only two entered under 50.00, but it’s Indiana transfer Brian Benzing who is the highest-placed returner from last season. In 2024, swimming for Towson State, Benzing finished runner-up to Cal’s now-graduated Liam Bell. The swimming portion of the morning ends with another Florida swimmer as the top seed, making it their 3rd on the day, and sophomore Jonny Marshall leads the field in the 100 back. Marshall was 8th last year and certainly has made great strides this season, but so too has Texas sophomore Will Modglin. The Longhorn missed out on the A-final in his freshman year but won the B-final in a time that would have placed 5th in the A-final. Seeded 2nd this year, Modglin will be looking for his teammate Hubert Kos, the highest-ranked returner from last year (4th) to join him in the final. Much like in the 200 free, Cal sits low in the rankings but is by no means out of it. Destin Lasco, 5th last year, will have an outside lane this morning as he is the 24th seed. So, too, will his teammate, French Olympian Mewen Tomac, who ranks 23rd. Men’s 100 Butterfly – Prelims NCAA Record: 42.80 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018) Championship Record: 42.80 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018) American Record: 42.80 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018) U.S. Open Record: 42.80 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018) 2024 Champion: Josh Liendo, Florida — 43.07 2024 Time to Final: 44.63/44.99 Top 16 Josh Liendo (FLOR) – 43.49 Dare Rose (CAL) – 43.74 Ilya Kharun (ASU) – 43.81 Tyler Ray (MICH) – 44.00 Gianluca Urlando (UGA) – 44.01 Andrei Minakov (STAN) – 44.05 Youssef Ramadan (VT) – 44.44 Scott Buff (FLOR) – 44.52 Nicholas Finch (YALE) – 44.58 Finn Brooks (IU) – 44.62 Tomer Frankel (IU) – 44.65 Michel Arkhangelskiy (FSU) – 44.66 Guilherme Caribe (TENN) – 44.71 Patrick Foy (UNC) – 44.85 Luke Miller (NCST) – 44.88 Braden Samuels (PURDUE) – 44.94 Heat one of six went the way of Cal’s Matthew Jensen. The fifth-year was out in 21.12 and hit the wall in 45.24, taking nearly three-quarters of a second off his seed time. His time didn’t last long as Landon Gentry of Virginia Tech went 45.15 in the very next heat. USC’s Michal Chmielewski was DQed for a false start in heat 2. Purdue’s Braden Samuels was the first swimmer under 45.00, winning heat 3 in 44.94, a time that would have made the final last year, but with 24 swimmers remaining, it’ll be a nervous wait to see if he makes it back. Ilya Kharun‘s swim in the next heat didn’t do much to assuage Samuels, as the Canadian Olympian went a PB of 43.81, taking.04 out of his old best. Kharun, the owner of the fastest flying 50 fly, was out in 20.49 and immediately went to the front of the pack. He closed in 23.34, winning the heat by .19 as Michigan junior Tyler Ray shadowed him for much of the race and finished 2nd in 44.00, a drop of .28 from his seed. Luca Urlando took the penultimate heat out faster than Kharun did, opening in 20.47, but slowed on the back half, hitting the wall in 44.01. The time, which was an add of .39 from his seed, puts him 3rd with one heat remaining, so he likely will be safe to make the A-final. 2023 Champion Youssef Ramadan of Virginia Tech had a strong swim for 2nd in the heat, hitting the wall in 44.44. The last heat was a much faster affair as Dare Rose took the race out in a speedy 20.20, leading Liendo by .43 at the halfway turn. The Canadian Olympian, however, kicked it into another gear and surged home over the final 50, splitting 22.86 to Rose’s 23.54 to take the win in 43.49. Rose wasn’t that far back, and his 43.74 secured him the #2 spot in tonight’s final. Men’s 400 IM – Prelims NCAA Record: 3:28.82 – Leon Marchand, Arizona State (2023) Championship Record: 3:28.82 –Leon Marchand, Arizona State (2023) American Record: 3:33.42 – Chase Kalisz, Georgia (2017) U.S. Open Record: 3:28.82 –Leon Marchand, Arizona State (2023) 2024 Champion: Leon Marchand, Arizona State – 3:32.12 2024 Time to Final: 3:39.85/3:41.91 Top 16 Rex Maurer (TEX) – 3:37.17 Lucas Henveaux (CAL) – 3:37.24 Tristan Jankovics (OSU) – 3:37.30 Dominik Mark Torok (WIS) – 3:37.88 Jake Magahey (UGA) – 3:37.95 Cooper Lucas (TEX) – 3:38.21 Baylor Nelson (TAMU) – 3:38.42 David Johnston (TEX) – 3:38.56 Mason Laur (UF) – 3:39.13 Gio Linscheer (UF) – 3:39.54 Stephen Hitchcock (UGA) – 3:39.55 Tommy Bried (LOU) – 3:39.66 Tyler Kopp (CAL) – 3:39.85 Kyle Ponsler (NCST) – 3:40.30 Humberto Najera (CAL) – 3:40.34 Louis Dramm (UNC) – 3:40.38 Cal is taking no quarter in their hunt for the NCAA title. Last night’s 3rd place finisher in the 500 free, Lucas Henveaux, dropped a hammer of a swim in the 2nd (and not circle-seeded) heat of the 400 IM. The Belgian, who is more known for his freestyle prowess, exploded to a new PB. Dropping nearly five seconds, the Cal 5th-year attacked the race with abandon. Out in 49.66, he closed with a 50.34 last 100 to stop the clock at 3:37.24, a time that would have placed 3rd in last year’s A-final. Likely spurned into action by Henveaux’s speed, heat 3, the first of the circle-seeded heats was fast. Four swimmers finished under the 3:40.00 barrier, led by Texas freshman Cooper Lucas. Seeded with a 3:39.02, Lucas had similar first and last 100s to Henveaux but was hampered by a 1:02 breaststroke. That said Lucas’s finishing time of 3:38.21 now sits second and represented a drop of .81 from his seed. Lucas out-dueled last year’s 3rd place-finished Baylor Nelson, who finished just behind at 3:38.42. A further three swimmers joined the sub-3:40 club this morning. The #2 seed, Tristan Jankovics, swam a controlled 3:37.30 to take the heat win. Jankovics likely has more in the bag, as he was off 1.79 seconds from his seed. Florida’s Gio Linscheer, who beat Jankovics in the final last year, took 2nd in the heat, going 3:39.54. His last 100 of 51.29 may prove to be the difference between the A and B final as he passed Louisville’s Tommy Bried, who flagged in the closing yards closing in 52.32 to stop the clock in 3:39.66. Rex Maurer, much like his prelims swim yesterday in the 500 free, looked smooth and in control. Out in 49.23, the fastest 1st 100, Maurer put the blinders on and kept up the pace. Seeded at 3:34.19, Maurer closed in 50.76 to hit the wall in 3:37.17. While nearly three seconds slower than his seed, it still secures him the top time for tonight’s final. Closing like a freight train, going 50.1 on the last 100 and a swift 24.36 on the last 50, Wisconsin junior Dominik Mark Torok took 2nd behind Maurer in a time of 3:37.88. The Badger won the consolation final last year in 3:39.20, but his efforts this morning secured him a spot in the big final as he slots in the 4th spot tonight. Men’s 200 Freestyle – Prelims NCAA Record: 1:28.81 – Luke Hobson, Texas (2024) Championship Record: 1:28.81 – Luke Hobson, Texas (2024) American Record: 1:28.81 – Luke Hobson, Texas (2024) U.S. Open Record: 1:28.81 – Luke Hobson, Texas (2024) 2024 Champion: Luke Hobson, Texas – 1:28.81 2024 Time to Final: 1:31.42/1:32.15 Top 16 Luke Hobson (TEX) – 1:29.60 Jack Alexy (CAL) – 1:30.07 Gabriel Jett (CAL) – 1:30.17 Charlie Hawke (BAMA) – 1:30.24 Jordan Crooks (TENN) – 1:30.38 Chris Guiliano (TEX) – 1:30.62 Henry McFadden (STAN) – 1:30.83 Tomas Koski (UGA) – 1:31.06 Robin Hanson (CAL) – 1:31.27 Patrick Sammon (ASU) – 1:31.45 Tomas Navikonis (OSU) – 1:31.52 Alexander Painter (UF) – 1:31.60 Gal Groumi (MICH) – 1:31.65 Kaique Alves (BAMA) – 1:31.76 Rafael Miroslaw (IU) – 1:31.85 Toni Dragoja (BAMA) – 1:31.88 You were warned about Cal’s dangerous low-seeded swimmers, so hopefully you weren’t caught unaware by Jack Alexy. Swimming in lane 2 of heat 2, Alexy, who led off the 800 free relay in 1:30.02, opened a massive lead in his heat as he flipped in 43.26. While slow compared to his 100 times, this split is .64 faster than he was on the relay, meaning that if he shut it down this morning, as he ultimately hit the wall in 1:30.07, he could have much more in the tank for tonight. The tracker was on to see if anyone could better his time over the next four heats. Heat 3 saw no swimmer under 1:31.50, but heat 4 saw a few swimmers get close. Fellow relay swimmer Gab Jett, was out .30 slower, attacking the race from lane 8. Jett, who split 1:29.16 on the relay, nearly caught Alexy’s time, finishing just .08 short, hitting the wall in 1:30.17. Texas’s Chris Guiliano was leading Jett at the 100 43.41 to 43.56, but could match the gear change and settled for 2nd in 1:30.62. Heat 5 saw the #2 seed Jordan Crooks explode to an early lead, flipping at the 100 wall in 43.07. The senior never looked back as he cruised into the wall, stopping the clock in 1:30.38. Stanford’s Henry McFadden was more than a second back at the midway point, going 44.18, but used his backhalf speed to close the gap to just .45 as he hit the wall in 1:30.83, a drop of .47 from his seed. It was a tall order to see if Alexy’s time could stand through all the heats, but Texas’s Luke Hobson was not obliging. Out in 43.57, the NCAA and American record holder in the event used his endurance to come home in 46.03 to once again swim another sub-1:30.00 swim. His time of 1:29.60, the only swim under that barrier, earns last night’s 500 free runner-up in the middle lane tonight. Alabama’s Charlie Hawke, who finished 4th last year, had a strong swim to place 2nd behind Hobson, going 1:30.24, a new PB by .20. Cal’s Robin Hanson, who was left off the 800 free relay this year, despite being on it last year, went a new PB of 1:31.27, an improvement of exactly half a second to finish in the unenviable position of 9th. Men’s 100 Breaststroke – Prelims NCAA Record: 49.51 – Julian Smith, Florida (2025) Championship Record: 49.53 – Liam Bell, Cal (2024) American Record: 49.51 – Julian Smith, Florida (2025) U.S. Open Record: 49.51 – Julian Smith, Florida (2025) 2024 Champion: Liam Bell, Cal – 49.53 2024 Time to Final: 51.27/51.87 Top 16 Finn Brooks (IU) – 50.28 Julian Smith (UF) – 50.30 Caspar Corbeau (IU) – 50.33 Nate Germonprez (TEX) – 50.46 Ron Polonsky (STAN) – 50.47 Denis Petrashov (LOU) – 50.57 Yamato Okadome (CAL) – 50.62 Jack Kelly (BROWN) – 50.64 Luke Barr (IU) – 50.81 Brian Benzing (IU) – 50.85 Carles Coll Marti (VT) – 50.88 Jassen Yep (IU) – 50.91 Josh Matheny (IU) – 51.07 Aleksas Savickas (UF) – 51.21 Andy Dobrzanski (ASU) – 51.35 Charles Rivers (CAL) – 51.45 I had hoped to make the heat-by-heat results last a little longer, but alas, the 100 breaststroke was just a little too fast. And by a little, I mean a lot. The 27th-placed swimmer this year would have tied for 16th last year. This year, there were 33 swimmers under the 52.00 barrier. Last year: 20. Swimming out of the penultimate heat, Indiana’s Finn Brooks will be the one to beat. After a quick turnaround from the 100 fly, where he qualified 10th, Brooks came back with a strong 50.28, a massive improvement upon his 52.75 from last year. Brooks entered the meet with a seed time of 49.94, just one of two swimmers under the 50.00 barrier. The other swimmer, the NCAA record holder Julian Smith, occupied lane 4 in the last heat and nearly overtook Brooks’s time going 50.30. Indiana entered the meet with six swimmers seeded among the top 16, and tonight, they will have six swimmers in the finals. Brian Benzing, who was the runner-up last year for Townson, was the 6th seed entering, but fellow transfer Caspar Corbeau will take his spot in the A-final. An Olympic medalist for the Netherlands, Corbeau was 50.33 this morning and will flank Smith with his teammate Brooks. Benzing added .12 to his seed time and will occupy lane 5 in the consolations final, just behind his teammate Luke Barr. In the team race, Cal and Texas each advanced one swimmer into the final as Nate Germonprez finds himself as the 4th seed (50.46), and Yamato Okadome’s 50.62 makes him the #7 seed in tonight’s final. Men’s 100 Backstroke – Prelims NCAA Record: 43.35 – Luca Urlando, Georgia (2022) Championship Record: 43.35 – Luca Urlando, Georgia (2022) American Record: 43.35 – Luca Urlando, Georgia (2022) U.S. Open Record: 43.35 – Luca Urlando, Georgia (2022) 2024 Champion: Brendan Burns, Indiana – 43.86 2024 Time to Final: 44.52/45.20 Top 16 Jonny Marshall (UF) – 43.88 Hubert Kos (TEX) – 43.90 Destin Lasco (CAL) – 44.07 Ruard Van Renen (UGA) – 44.08 Mewen Tomac (CAL) – 44.16 Owen McDonald (IU) – 44.31 Will Modglin (TEX) – 44.41 John Crush (ARMY) – 44.52 Quintin McCarty (NCST) – 44.56 Youssef Ramadan (VT) – 44.61 Harrison Lierz (TENN) – 44.67 Aaron Sequeira (STAN) – 44.86 Kai Van Westering (IU) – 44.87 Michel Arkhangelskiy (FSU) – 44.94 Max Wilson (FSU) – 45.01 Bjorn Seeliger (CAL) / Stuart Seymour (NW) – 45.22 ***SWIM-OFF*** SWIM-OFF Finally, there is a swim-off, my friends. If we had gone to this whole meet without one, I’d have been very disappointed. But before we jump into that, let’s cover the 100 back. Florida’s Jonny Marshall remains the fastest in the event this year as he posted the fastest time of the morning, going 43.88. Marshall was the only swimmer among the A-finalists to open under 21.00, as he was 20.87 to the feet at the 50 turn. Hubert Kos, last night’s 200 IM champion, joined Marshall under 44.00 this morning, swimming a swift 43.90, slicing .13 off his seed time. Kos was 44.13 in this event last year for ASU, so this morning’s swim is a good sign that Kos may be in form to get back near his PB of 43.75. Texas’s Will Modglin was the #2 seed, entered with a 43.91, but added half a second, finishing 44.41. The swim wound up not being too costly as he still made the A-final but was just .15 away from missing out on the bigger haul of points. Modglin and Kos’s A-final presence is counter by CAl who also advanced two swimmers into the A-final. Whereas the Texas pair were expected to be there based on their seeding, Cal’s Mewen Tomac and Destin Lasco were not, as the two were the 23rd and 24th seeds, respectively. Each made the best of their situation, employing some outside smoke, with Lasco earning a repeat trip to the A-final with a 44.07. Tomac, a French Olympian in his first NCAA season, sliced a second off his PB and went 44.16 to secure lane 2 tonight. Army’s Johnny Crush rounds out the A-final. Their first individual NCAA finalist since 1987, Crush dropped .01 off his seed to secure lane 8 tonight. Cal 5th-year Bjorn Seeliger and Northwestern sophomore Stuart Seymour tied for 16th this morning with a time of 45.22. For Seeliger, the time represents a new season best of .33, whereas, for Seymour, it’s an addition of .15. The pair were nearly identical at the 50, with Seeliger going 21.63 and Seymour 21.61. Seeliger has a PB of 44.58 from the 2022 NCAAs, and Seymour’s PB of 45.07 comes from his bronze medal performance at the 2025 Big Tens. Men’s 100 Backstroke – Swim-OFF Bjorn Seeliger (California) – 44.17 Stuart Seymour (Northwestern) – 45.11 With the possibility of nine points on the line, Cal’s Seeliger wasted nothing as he fought for his Cal Bears’ possible NCAA title. The tall Swedish 2x Olympian took it out fast, going 21.08 to the feet. For reference, he was 21.63 this morning and was 20.57 to the touch on the 200 Medley relay. Seymour couldn’t match the aggressiveness and was already back by nearly a second, flipping in 21.97. Seeliger, as mentioned above, has a PB of 44.58 but dropped a new best of 44.17 to claim the swim-off. While I’ve mentioned before that swim-offs often bring out a newfound strength in swimmers, had Seeliger attacked his race this morning with the same strategy, he would have qualified for the A-final tonight in 6th. Instead, he’ll occupy lane 8 in the B-final. Seymour, for his part, was faster than he was this morning as well, slicing .11 of his time earlier. Men’s 3-Meter Diving – Prelims Championship Record: 529.10 — Samuel Dorman, Miami (FL) (2015) 2024 Champion: Carson Tyler, Indiana — 476.85 2024 Scores to Final: 384.10/356.65 Round 1/6 Update: The Indiana duo of Carson Tyler and Quinn Henninger are off to a strong start in today’s three meter prelims. After an uncharacteristic performance in yesterday’s prelims for Tyler, he is determined to get into that championship final. His opening 78.20 dive puts him on track to do just that. Indiana getting two divers (potentially three) into the A final would be huge for them as a team. The diving prelims are always really close and come down to the last round for the final spots. Divers should aim for around 65+ points per dive on average to be in the running for the A final and around 60 points on average to be in the B. Round 2/6 Update: The Hoosiers are having a very good morning thus far. Henninger and Tyler continue to sit in first and second place, while junior Max Weinrich moved from 28th to 9th place in just the last round alone. Jack Ryan of Stanford, Max Flory of Miami and Shangfei Wang of USC all started strongly and finish out the top five for the time being. Texas freshman Jacob Welsh also started well and finds himself in 6th place currently. Round 3/6 Update: Indiana continues to roll at the half way point in this three meter contest. Henninger and Tyler hold steady in the 1-2 positions while Max Weinrich uses back-to-back 70+ point dives to vault himself all the way up to fifth at the moment. The Hoosiers look to gain massive points on the board tonight, which will help them tremendously in the team race. Texas and Cal each have one diver in B final position currently, which will help them offset at least a tiny bit of the massive points haul IU is on the path to scoring tonight. Round 4/6 Update: IU looks primed to get three up in this diving final, with their athletes sitting in first, second, and fourth right now. Barring any disasters in the last two rounds, they are locks for this A final. Texas’ Jacob Welsh is currently in top eight position, but it’s going to be close to see who squeaks into the championship final. Purdue currently has a few divers that look primed to score as well if they continue on their current trajectory. Round 5/6 Update: It’s going to be a close race for the final few places to qualify for the championship final. Texas’ Jacob Welsh, Pitt’s Cameron Cash and Ohio State’s Clayton Chaplin are all currently occupying 6th through 8th, but they have plenty of divers on their tail. Cal’s Joshua Thai is likely to qualify for the consolation final, giving the Bears their first diving points of the meet. Round 6/6 Update: The Hoosier fans have got to be ecstatic at the results of this event. It could not have gone better for them, getting all three divers in the championship final and a huge point total for the team. IU’s diving squad is keeping them squarely in the team race. Texas freshman Jacob Welsh stepped up in a huge way for the Longhorns today, he only finished 17th at SEC’s last month so today’s performance marked a huge improvement for him. Pitt’s Cameron Cash clinched the last spot to get into the A final, narrowly edging out SEC Champion, Carson Paul from LSU, 369.50 to 369.35. USC first year and three meter Olympic finalist, Moritz Wesemann had a disappointing afternoon, only qualifying to the consolation final. Cal’s Joshua Thai was the 16th place finisher and will add precious points to his team’s tally tonight. With a team race this close, every point is so valuable. Top 16 Carson Tyler (Indiana) – 443.20 Quinn Henninger (Indiana) – 420.90 Jack Ryan (Stanford) – 411.00 Max Weinrich (Indiana) – 396.05 Shangfei Wang (USC) – 390.40 Jacob Welsh (Texas) – 375.50 Clayton Chaplin (Ohio State) – 369.55 Cameron Cash (Pitt) – 369.50 Carson Paul (LSU) – 369.35 Allen Bottego (Texas A&M) – 366.40 Maxwell Miller (Purdue) – 364.75 Moritz Wesemann (USC) – 363.50 Max Fowler (Georgia Tech) – 357.80 Jordan Rzepka (Purdue) – 357.45 Bennett Greene (Tennessee) – 356.65 Joshua Thai (California)

2025 Men’s NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships Day 3 Prelims Heat Sheet A further three swimmers joined the sub-3:40 club this morning. The #2 seed, Tristan Jankovics, swam a controlled 3:37.30 to take the heat win. Jankovics likely has more in the bag, as he was off 1.79 seconds from his seed. Florida’s Gio Linscheer, […]

2025 Men’s NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships

Day 3 Prelims Heat Sheet

A further three swimmers joined the sub-3:40 club this morning. The #2 seed, Tristan Jankovics, swam a controlled 3:37.30 to take the heat win. Jankovics likely has more in the bag, as he was off 1.79 seconds from his seed. Florida’s Gio Linscheer, who beat Jankovics in the final last year, took 2nd in the heat, going 3:39.54. His last 100 of 51.29 may prove to be the difference between the A and B final as he passed Louisville’s Tommy Bried, who flagged in the closing yards closing in 52.32 to stop the clock in 3:39.66.
Liendo’s 43.23 leads the way, but unlike last year, when he was the only swimmer entered under the 44.00 barrier, two others join him. Georgia’s Luca Urlando (43.62) and ASU’s Ilya Kharun (43.85) will occupy lane 4 in the other circle-seeded heats. It’s not going to be a walk in the park for the top three, however, as the rest of the field is littered with potential upsets. Dare Rose, 5th last year, ranks 10th. Virginia Tech’s Youssef Ramadan, 6th last year, sits tied at 14th, and last year’s runner-up Tome Frankel lurks in the most uncomfortable spot, tied for 16th with Texas first-year Kyle Peck.
But before we jump into that, let’s cover the 100 back. Florida’s Jonny Marshall remains the fastest in the event this year as he posted the fastest time of the morning, going 43.88. Marshall was the only swimmer among the A-finalists to open under 21.00, as he was 20.87 to the feet at the 50 turn.
Cal is taking no quarter in their hunt for the NCAA title. Last night’s 3rd place finisher in the 500 free, Lucas Henveaux, dropped a hammer of a swim in the 2nd (and not circle-seeded) heat of the 400 IM. The Belgian, who is more known for his freestyle prowess, exploded to a new PB. Dropping nearly five seconds, the Cal 5th-year attacked the race with abandon. Out in 49.66, he closed with a 50.34 last 100 to stop the clock at 3:37.24, a time that would have placed 3rd in last year’s A-final.
Top 16
Round 1/6 Update:
Indiana hasn’t been mentioned much, but the Hoosier come into a day in a big way with four swimmers seeded to score in the top 10 and six in the top 16. Finn Brooks leads the way as the #2 seed, sitting behind NCAA record holder Julian Smith. The pair are the only two entered under 50.00, but it’s Indiana transfer Brian Benzing who is the highest-placed returner from last season. In 2024, swimming for Towson State, Benzing finished runner-up to Cal’s now-graduated Liam Bell.

Men’s 100 Butterfly – Prelims

NCAA Record: 42.80 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018)
Championship Record: 42.80 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018)
American Record: 42.80 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018)
U.S. Open Record: 42.80 – Caeleb Dressel, Florida (2018)
2024 Champion: Josh Liendo, Florida — 43.07
2024 Time to Final: 44.63/44.99

Indiana continues to roll at the half way point in this three meter contest. Henninger and Tyler hold steady in the 1-2 positions while Max Weinrich uses back-to-back 70+ point dives to vault himself all the way up to fifth at the moment. The Hoosiers look to gain massive points on the board tonight, which will help them tremendously in the team race. Texas and Cal each have one diver in B final position currently, which will help them offset at least a tiny bit of the massive points haul IU is on the path to scoring tonight.