A new school record was set en route to a top 25 finish at the NCAA Championships for Texas A&M’s men’s swimming and diving team.
The teams started their competition Wednesday at Georgia Tech’s McAuley Aquatics Center for the 2016 NCAA Championships in Atlanta. The Aggies finished Saturday ranked No. 25 in the nation with a total of only 20 points gained in the competition as A&M’s bitter rival Texas took home the national title. Three Aggies walked away from the event with All-America honors.
In swimming, sophomore Mauro Castillo Luna from Zacatecas, Mexico finished 42nd with a time of 1:47.52 while fellow Aggie sophomore Brock Bonetti captured 49th on 1:50.42 in the 200 yard individual medley. Castillo Luna later placed 24th in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 53.07 while Bonetti finished 32nd in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 47.32.
Castillo Luna continued to demonstrate a great showing at the NCAA Championships as he broke a school record 一 which he previously set 一 in the 200-yard breaststroke as he finished 10th in the event with a time of 1:54.35. The previous record was broken by Castillo Luna at the SEC Championships in February with a time of 1:54.64.
“Mauro knew he needed to swim well for the team to finish in the top 25 and he responded to the pressure with a school record,” Texas A&M head coach Jay Holmes said. “It was great swim and great effort, and it was a lot of fun to watch.”
Thursday, Freshman diver Sam Thornton from the United Kingdom earned honorable mention All-America honors after a 16th place finish in the one-meter springboard dive based on a score of 334.25 in the consolation final. He qualified for the final with a 344.45 total which gained him 14th place in prelims. Thornton would later go on to place 30th in the three-meter springboard dive.
A&M sophomore diver Tyler Henschel from Alberta, Canada placed eighth overall in the three meter springboard dive. His score of 332.55 in the final solidified his eighth place finish which followed a 408.10 score that in the finals qualifier. Henschel ultimately finished with a 16th place performance in the platform dive which earned him a score of 283.80 in the event. Henschel missed qualifying for the final with a ninth place finish in prelims.
Now, the Aggies will begin preparing to represent not just Texas A&M, but their individual countries. The U.S. Olympic Trials for diving start on Saturday, June 18 and the Olympic Trials for swimming begin on June 26. Diving trials will take place in Indianapolis, Indiana while swimming prepares to compete in Omaha, Nebraska.
