Feb. 27, 2016 HOUSTON, Texas (UNLVRebels.com) -
A victory by Boris Kulizhnikov in the 200 breast highlighed the final day of action for UNLV on Saturday at the 2016 WAC Swimming and Diving championships, held this year at the University of Houston's CRWC Natatorium. The Rebels have finished the championships in fourth place with 578 points. Air Force claimed this year's championships with 771 points, while Wyoming was in second with 690 and Grand Canyon third in 650 in the seven-team event.
"Our men fought hard tonight to cap off their conference season," said interim head coach Bobby Folan. "Boris was amazing and really showed how tough we can be. I'm proud of the way our men carried themselves this week, it has been a hard year and they were able to leave everything in the pool every time they competed. We will be back, bigger, better and strong then ever."
The night began with the 1650 free, and Ethan Klein was the top finisher for hte team with his sixth place swim of 15:29.21. That was a NCAA 'B" provisional time and the eighth-fastest time in UNLV History. Also scoring in the event was Brenton Sayers, 11th in 16:07.34.
A pair of Rebels turned in top-eight finishes in the 200 back, as Pasha Semochkin took fifth in 1:46.18 and Hannon Daigler was eighth in 1:47.74. Semochkin's time was a NCAA 'B' time and the fifth fastest ever at UNLV, while Daigler swam a 1:46.83 in the morning preliminaries which ranks sixth on the record book. Also scoring in the event was Christian Sobczak, as he won the consolation heat to place ninth in 1:47.63.
The 100 free nearly saw another Rebel champion, as Samuel Lameynardie came up just short after touching the wall in 43.43, .31 behind event champion Mazen El Kamash of Grand Canyon. Lameynardie's time was a 'B' time, while Kasey Foley also earned a 'B' time after swimming 44.14 to place fourth. Dillon Virva added an eighth place finish in 45.69. Again UNLV won the consolation heat, with Forrest Beesley going 44.40 to place ninth while Caio Dini was 15th in 45.23.
The next event of the night was the 200 breast, and this time UNLV did come out on top with Kulizhnkov's winning time of 1:56.20. That gave him a 'B' cut and is the third fastest ever at UNLV, after he came in seeded fourth following his swim in the morning preliminaries. Francois Van Wynsberghe was 12th in 2:02.70 for UNLV.
The final scoring race for UNLV was in the 200 fly, with Avi Cohen placing fourth overall in 1:45.64, a 'B' cut. Chris Havton was 14th in 1:50.18 and Joseph Starkweather took 15th in 1:51.66. The Rebels were disqualified in the final event of the night, the 400 free relay.
The next competition for the Rebels will be the NCAA Championships, held in March on the campus of Georgia Tech in Atlanta, Ga. Dillon Virva has automatically qualified in the 50 free, while several more Rebels and UNLV relays have earned provisional times, it will be decided in the next few weeks which of those times will make the final cut.
2016 WAC Men's Swimming & Diving Championships
CRWC Natatorium
Houston, Texas
Saturday, February 27
Fourth Day Results
Team Scoring
- Air Force - 771
- Wyoming - 690
- GrandCanyon - 650
- UNLV - 578
- North Dakota - 344
- CSU Bakersfield - 309
- Seattle - 183
Top-Eight Finishes
200 Breast - 1st place - Boris Kulizhnikov (1:56.20*)
100 Free - 2nd place - Samuel Lameynardie (43.43*), 4th place - Kasey Foley (44.14*), 8th place - Dillon Virva (45.69)
200 Fly - 4th place - Avi Cohen (1:45.64*)
200 Back - 5th place - Pasha Semochkin (1:46.18*), 8th place - Hannon Daigler (1:47.74)
1650 Free - 6th place - Ethan Klein (15:29.21*)
^ - NCAA 'A' Automatic Time
* - NCAA 'B' Provisional Time
