IU drop meets to No. 1 Texas, No. 5 Michigan

The IU men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams don’t like losing, but they feel they have plenty of positives to take out of their respective defeats to Michigan and Texas last weekend. \n“We wanted to show our guys what top five teams are,” said IU coach Ray Looze. “We saw it and have a better idea of what we have to do.”\nThe men’s squad fell to the No. 1-ranked Longhorns and No. 5 Wolverines by scores of 181-119 and 167-133, respectively. IU brought in a fair amount of victories in various events, but the meet was lost in the spot they feel they needs the most improvement.\n“They’ve got more depth than we do,” Looze said. “Our second and third lines need to be better. That’s something we’re addressing and were aware of.” \nPerhaps the event that summed up the meet was an impressive victory in the 200-yard medley relay, in which seniors Ben Hesen, Pat Penoyar, Todd Patrick and junior Matt Lenton all played big parts in the win. The Hoosiers have been especially strong in the event all season, and getting the victory over two of the best teams proved just how good the Hoosiers are in the event. \nBut as was the case in many other events, the Hoosiers couldn’t get the most out of their B and C relay squads. The next IU team to finish the relay placed sixth.\nWhile the second and third lines fell short, IU still had several great performances from its stars. Although Hesen suffered his first individual loss of the season after finishing just .14 seconds off the pace in the 100-yard butterfly, he garnered three victories in other events. His performance warranted a red IU cap from the coaching staff, the equivalent of giving out game balls. Patrick also received a cap after winning three events.\nThe women’s team also suffered setbacks. The team kept it close with Texas, but lost 190-180. The score against Michigan wasn’t quite as narrow, because the Wolverines took care of business en route to a 207-163 win. \nSophomore Presley Bard had the top individual performance for the Hoosiers. She competed in 11 events, winning four of them. The Hoosiers also joined the men by winning the 200-yard medley relay. A young squad of Bard, sophomore Donna Smailis, junior Sarah Stockwell and freshman Kelsey Atchison edged out Michigan with a time of 1:43.49. \nMeanwhile, Brittany Barwegen dominated the butterfly events, winning the 100- and 200-yard races. Diver Brittney Feldman also continued her winning ways. She finished first in the three-meter. \nDespite the two losses, the Hoosiers are staying upbeat. \n“Whenever you go against a higher-ranked opponent there are positives,” Looze said. “This gives our team a better idea of what it takes to score points against the best and, ultimately, in the Big Ten championships and NCAAs.”