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Dan Baiko Attempts to Qualify for Nationals at Diving Zones

Dan Baiko Attempts to Qualify for Nationals at Diving Zones
Posted: Mar 10, 2008

March 10, 2008

Contact: Gene Natale, Jr.

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Meet 16
at NCAA Zone C Diving
Date: March 14 (one-meter) and 15 (three-meter), 2008
Time: 2:00 p.m. EST
Site: McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion (1,750), Ron O'Brien Diving Well, Columbus, Ohio

SETTING THE SCENE: Dan Baiko will attempt to qualify for the NCAA Championships at the Zone C Diving competition at McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion at Ohio State University in Columbus, Ohio from March 14-15.

RECAPPING LAST WEEK: Jakub Dobies, Deni Gasparin, and Stephen Grove competed at the Ohio State Last Ditch NCAA Qualifier in Columbus, Ohio. Here is a brief look at how the Vikings fared over the weekend.

Men - at Ohio State Last Chance Meet (March 8, in Columbus, Ohio)
Jakub Dobies set a school, Horizon League, and Peppe Natatorium record in the 100 breaststroke, winning the event in 53.64 (59.01 in prelims). His time was only .4 from the NCAA "A" Qualifying time of 53.60, and improves his national ranking in the event to 13th. Deni Gasparin placed second in the 200 breast (1:00.43 in prelims, 57.21 in finals), while Stephen Grove was third in the 50 free prelims (20.76).

VIKING DIVERS ON TOP, AGAIN: Senior diver Dan Baiko has thus far duplicated Chris Dalman's season of a year ago, winning league diver of the week honors five times, winning both the one and three-meter boards at the league championships, and being named diver of the year following the championship meet. Baiko also set an Ocasek Natatorium record in the one-meter dive, scoring 322.65 in the win.

DIVING COACH KARBAN ON BAIKO: "This is a very exciting and challenging opportunity for Dan to show that he has got the competitive skills to compete at the national qualifying meet. He knows what its like after seeing Chris Dalman qualify last year, and if Danny does what he is capable of, he's got a chance to qualify this year."

THE KARBAN FILE: Rich Karban is currently in his fifth season in his current run as the Cleveland State diving coach. Following the 2008 Horizon League Championship, Karban was awarded his fifth consecutive men's diving coach of the year honor after he guided Baiko to a sweep in the one and three-meter dives. Karban was also a 2000 inductee into the CSU Athletics Hall of Fame for his own diving career which culminated during his senior year in 1984 when he qualified for NCAA Diving Zones. Karban was assistant Viking diving coach for two seasons following his graduation, and head diving coach for one season (1986-87) before coaching at Eastern Michigan (`89-'94) and for the United States diving club in 1992. He has also worked with US Olympic diving coach Ron O'Brien, who is the namesake of the O'Brien Diving Well at Ohio State.

NATIONAL DIVING QUALIFICATION, RECENT HISTORY: Last season, Chris Dalman became the first CSU diver in 30 years to qualify for the national championship when he achieved the feat in both the one and three-meter dives. Dalman fell just short in his All-America bid when he placed 18th in the one-meter (303.15) and 20th in the three-meter (330.80). Had Dalman placed in the top-16 he would have become the first diving All-American from Cleveland State and the Horizon League.

...AND BAIKO HAS BEEN CLOSE, TOO: Dan Baiko qualified for NCAA Zones for the first time last season, but was not able to qualify for nationals after finishing 22nd in the three-meter (260.75). If he is successful in qualifying this season, he will become only the second CSU diver to qualify for the national championship since both Ron Barrick and Jim Fedor accomplished the feat in 1975.

BAIKO IN 2007-08: Dan Baiko has scored victories in the diving events in both the one and three meter dives in six different meets this season, culminating in his sweep at the Horizon League Championships. At the championship meet he first won the three-meter (325.95), following that up with a win in the one-meter (322.65). His league titles were the first he had garnered in his career.

ONE FOR THE AGES: Jakub Dobies has set four school records this season, in the 100 breast (53.64), 50 free (20.70, broken by Stephen Grove on Feb. 21), 100 free (44.62), and 200 breaststroke (2:00.43). Last year he was the first Viking since Harold Wagner (100 fly, 1987) to swim at the NCAA Championship, where he competed in the 100 breaststroke, finishing 28th overall (54.39). He was also the first Horizon League swimmer in that same span of time to go to nationals. Dobies also has the second-best 200 IM time in school history (1:49.82), and swam on three school-record-setting relay teams this season (200 free, 200 medley, 400 medley). He also has had a part in five Horizon League records this season (100 breast, 200 breast, 200 free relay, 200 medley relay, 400 medley relay).

...AND AT THE CHAMPIONSHIP: Dobies excelled at the Horizon League Championships, winning the 100 breast (54.31) and 200 IM (1:53.34 in prelims, 1:49.82 in finals), and swimming on three winning relays. He also was runner-up in the 100 free (45.52). Each relay he was a part of (200 free, 200 medley, 400 free) set school, league, and meet records. He ended the week tied with Green Bay's Alex Hill and Wright State's Nathan Demchuk for the overall lead in points at the championship meet (57).

...MORE ON DOBIES: Dobies has set two NCAA "B" qualifying marks this season. His record 100 breast time of 53.64 is currently the 13th best time in the nation and only .4 seconds from the "A" qualfying time of 53.60. His 200 breast time of 2:00.43 is a Horizon League and school record and the 56th best in the nation.

NEW, YET STRANGELY FAMILIAR: Freshman Deni Gasparin won newcomer of the year honors at the Horizon League Championships. His award marks the second straight year a Viking has received the honor, as Jakub Dobies received the accolade last season. Gasparin won the 200 breast (2:01.02) on the championship's final day, setting a new Ocasek Natatorium record in the process. He also was runner-up in the 100 breast (55.34), third in the 200 IM (1:51.21) and swam on the three record-setting Viking relay teams (200 free, 200 medley, 400 medley, all league champions). He also swam on the fifth-place 800 free relay (3:01.04).

GROVE THE WORLD BEATER: Of the six school records set at the league championship, sophomore Stephen Grove had a hand in five of them. After helping the 200 free and 200 medley relay teams win in record-setting fashion, he set a school record in the prelims of the 50 free (20.41, or .31 from the NCAA "B" Qualifying time of 20.10), winning the event with a time of 20.71 in the final heat. Later in the second day he swam on the record-setting 400 medley relay team (3:18.55). Grove then set yet another school record on the third day of competition, this time in the 100 fly (48.86). He finished second overall, and broke a record that had been in place for 21 years, the only Viking record that had been more than eight years old. The previous record holder, Harold Wagner, (48.89) swam at the NCAA Championships for the Vikings in 1987.

DUECKER NEVER BETTER: After flirting with the school record in the 400 IM the past four years (coming within .5 of the previous record, 3:59.20, last season), senior Dave Duecker finally broke through at the Horizon League Championships, shattering the old record by three seconds and setting a new mark of 3:56.45. Duecker was finished second in the event by only two-tenths of a second to swimmer of the year Nathan Demchuk (of Wright State). Duecker was also second in the 1,000 free (9:27.38), and fifth in the 200 fly (1:50.74), and was on the fifth place 800 free relay (Winchell, Gasparin, Nisic, 6:49.66).

W FOR WINCHELL: Sophomore Todd Winchell also was a member of the three record setting Viking relays at the league championships. Individually, he won the 100 back (50.31), was fourth in the 100 fly (49.30), and sixth in the 200 back (1:52.54).

PEAK TIME: The Viking men's team set a total of 45 season-best times or scores at the Horizon League Championship. However, the change in venue from Cleveland State to Akron may have affected some of the times, notably those of Jakub Dobies. Dobies was not able to improve his national ranking in the 100 breast while swimming at Akron. However, with his chance to go the the natinoal championship possibly hanging in the balance, Dobies came through with a time of 53.64 at a last chance meet at Ohio State. In doing so, he improved his national ranking in the event to 13th and improved his chances to go the the NCAA Championship exponentially.

MEN'S & WOMEN'S HEAD COACH:
Wally Morton (Miami (OH) '70)
At CSU (as Men's Coach): 241-133-1 (27th Year)
(as Women's Coach): 4-10-0 (1st Year)
Overall: Same as above

Wally Morton has led the Vikings to 12 conference championships and 21 winning seasons in his 27 years at the helm of the men's program. Morton has guided the Vikings to seven straight seasons of 10 or more dual meet victories, and a Viking has won the male swimmer of the year award in four of the last six seasons. Morton has taken over as the head women's coach this season, his first at the helm of both the men's and women's programs. Morton also serves as the school's director of competitive aquatics and has been with CSU for 32 total years.

UP NEXT: Those Vikings who qualify will compete at the 2008 NCAA Swimming and Diving Championships, held at Weyerhauser King County Aquatic Center at the University of Washington in Federal Way, Wash. from March 27-29.