Jan. 16, 2010
Contact: Renee Adam
Cleveland, Ohio - The group of Deni Gasparin, Mark deSwardt, Berry Thompson, Matt DiMasso and Zvonimir Androic combined for nine Cleveland State individual victories as the Vikings topped Duquesne, 135-88 and Xavier, 143-80 today in Busbey Natatorium.
"We have been training very hard the past few weeks so everyone is physically torn down and to still get these wins is great," head coach Wally Morton said. "Everyone had great swims for us today and I am very proud in the way they came out against some tough competition."
deSwardt got things started for the Vikings winning the 1,000 freestyle with a time of 9:30.47, out touching second place finisher, Graham Thoresen by 13 seconds. Thoresen recorded a second place time of 9:43.53 in the race for CSU.
"Mark is one of the premier swimmers in the nation, and that is definitely evident with the way he is swimming at this point in the season against some great competition," Morton said. "He will only continue to get better as the season goes on, and hopefully he will be able to improve on his personal best times."
deSwardt went on to win the 200 fly and the 500 free, leading the Vikings with three individual victories. He finished the 200 fly in 1:52.50 and the 500 free in a time of 4:35.20.
Thompson was the second Viking to take home a first place finish, his coming in the 50 free when he touched the wall in a time of 21.05. He also beat out the competition in the 100 free, finishing the race in a first place time of 46.81.
Androic took home first place honors in the 200 back, finishing with a time of 1:55.19.
The final individual victory for CSU came in the 200 breast when Gasparin had a time of 2:08.79, finished three seconds ahead of the rest of the field.
DiMasso recorded scores of 273.40 in the 1-meter board, and 289.35 in the 3-meter diving event, giving him first place honors in both events.
The 400 medley relay team of Todd Winchell, Jakub Dobies, Androic and Gasparin swam a 3:27.58, which was good enough for a second place finish against Duquesne and a first place finish against Xavier.
"Travelling to Wright State will be a good challenge for us," Morton said. "They have a very challenging pool to swim in and I am excited to see what the team brings."
The Vikings return to action next weekend when they travel to Wright State for a 1:00 p.m. meet on Saturday, January 23.
