COLUMBUS, Ga. - Two more Mustangs made individual podiums and one more relay team did as well on the final day of competition Saturday at the NAIA Swim & Dive National Championships.
J.D. Torres finished fifth in the 1650-yard Freestyle with a time of 16:06.48, his personal best. The 1-mile event is 66 lengths of the 25-yard pool.
"I was trying to be pretty consistent and build into the race," Torres said. "My goal was just to keep my hips up because that's what I struggled with in the 500. So that was my goal, plus make good turns, and I felt like I did that pretty well this time."
Both he and Head Coach Curren Bates knew he had a good chance at a Top 8 finish and getting on the podium.
"That's something that me and Curren (Bates) talked about before that I have a legitimate shot at being an All-American," Torres said. "So I was just thinking during the race, 'Hey, I can do this. I've got this.'"
Kylee Sears finished fifth in the final of the 200-yard Butterfly with a 2:07.43.
"Honestly, for me it was like a bonus swim," Sears said. "I was really just happy with what I did (Friday, winning the national championship in the 200-yard Freestyle). But I wanted to see what I could do, even though I was pretty tired. I was happy with how I did."
In other races of note, Trudy Patterson finished 10th overall in the 200-yard Backstroke B-Final with a 2:05.20.
Camryn Bussey in the B-Final of the 100-yard Freestyle had a 52.86, good for 11th.
In the B-Final of the 100-yard Freestyle,
Dylan Crane placed 12th with a time of 45.43.
In her last race for The Master's, Jasmine Biederman qualified for the B-Final of the 200-yard Breaststroke, finishing 16th with a time of 2:28.98.
Freddie Cole raced in the B-Final of the 200-yard Breaststroke, coming in ninth with a time of 2:03.49, the fastest he has ever swam that race.
The final event of the night was the 400-yard Freestyle Relays. The Master's women's team of Kylie Sears, Camryn Bussey, Trudy Patterson and Emma McMurray finished fourth with a time of 3:30.32 to earn the spot on the podium. The men's team ofÂ
Tyler LeDet,
Michael Loughboro,
Nilton Dos Santos de Oliveira and
Dylan Crane placed 11th with a time of 3:05.74.
In the team competitions over the four-day championships, the men's team finished seventh and the women's team finished ninth. The Mustangs finished with a total of 13 podiums, by far the most successful national championships in program history.
"I think the team performed to their expectations and did a good job of bringing glory to the Lord," Coach Bates said. "Perhaps some didn't perform to their own expectations, but it was a good learning experience. We have a young team, only one senior at this meet. So next year I think we are going to come back stronger and out-perform our expectations and be hungrier and be more comfortable here. The team just did a real good job of being a light for the Lord here and trying their hardest all the way to the end."
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