Halfacre 200 Backstroke Three-Peat Wraps Up Successful SSC Showing at NCAA Swim Meet
 Jeb Halfacre stands atop the 200 back podium by teammate Luis Rojas, who finished third. |
A third consecutive national championship in the 200-yard backstroke for Florida Southern's Jeb Halfacre highlighted the final day of competition at the NCAA Division II Swimming Championship at Mansfield, Texas. The FSC men finished third in the final standings, best in program history. The Tampa women placed fourth, marking the program's best finish since 1988.
Halfacre, who had won the event at each of the two previous national championships, won this year's event in an NCAA-record time of 1:43.41. In addition to the individual national title, Halfacre earlier in the week swam leadoff on two national champion relay teams that set NCAA records. He started the 400-yard medley relay team that won in 3:12.43 on Thursday and led off the 800-yard freestyle relay team that won in 6:27.73 on Friday. His teammates on the 400-yard medley relay team were Miguel Ferreira, Bruce Janzen and Stephen Swan. His teamates on the 800-yard freestyle relay team were Luis Rojas, Allan Gutierrez and Swan.
The FSC men finished the competition in third place with 316.5 points, their best finish ever. Drury won the men's title for the eighth straight year with 473 points. Nova Southeasteren was 10th with 227 points, and Tampa was 13th with 104.
On the women's side, Wayne State edged out Drury by one point, 497-496, to snap Drury's three-year championship streak. Tampa posted its best finish since a runner-up bid in 1988, placing fourth with 222 points. Florida Southern finished 10th with 141 points, while Nova Southeastern was 14th with 113.5.
Other top performances for the men in Saturday’s final day of competition included a third-place finish in the men’s 200-yard backstroke by FSC's Rojas. NSU's Erin Black also placed third in the women's 1,650 freestyle. Tampa's Heather Glenday was sixth in the same event. In the men's 1,650 freestyle, NSU's Jonas Grundstrom finished sixth, followed by his teammate, Oskar Nordstrand, in seventh.
Other impressive showings came from Tampa's Lisa Bero, who touched the wall fifth in the women's 200 breaststroke. In the men's version of that same event, NSU's Armin Hornikel was fourth, and FSC's Ferreira was sixth.
The FSC men's team wrapped up another successful relay performance with a third-place finish by the 400-yard freestyle relay team of Gutierrez, Rojas, Robbie Swan and Stephen Swan.
The SSC's contingent at the national championship concluded the event with two individual national titles, as NSU's Black tallied an individual championship in the women's 500 freestyle on Friday evening in addition to Halfacre's three-peat. The Mocs also secured the league's two relay national titles as noted above.
All told, 66 All-America and Honorable Mention All-America accolades were claimed by SSC swimmers. SSC relay teams picked up 11 All-America honors compliments of top eight finishes in their respective races.
