The Aggies kicked off their senior night meet in a fitting fashion.
The four seniors being honored opened Friday’s meet against SMU combined for the opening victory, clinching first in the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:29.17.
The quartet — Benjamin Walker, Mike Thibert, Adam Koster and Jake Gibbons — added five other first place victories, helping the No. 5 Texas A&M men’s swimming and diving team to a 158-99 win over SMU.
Walker, who fronted the seniors’ relay win, also notched victories in the 100 and 200 breastroke. Thibert added a win in the 50 free and Koster topped the 100 free and 100 fly.
Not only were the seniors instrumental in helping the Aggies to their highest ranking in the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America polls since 2001, they were also a piece of history for associate head coach Jason Calanog.
“It was the first class Jason Calanog helped recruit here; when he got here, they were the first class we recruited together,” A&M men’s head coach Jay Holmes said. “They have been a staple for us.”
Sophomore Shaine Casas was also instrumental to the Aggies’ success on Friday, notching a win in the 1,000 free with a time of 9:19.67.
Other standouts were sophomore Peter Simmons who placed ahead of two SMU Mustangs in the 100 back with a time of 51.03, and freshman Jace Brown, who won the 200 fly with a time of 1:47.92.
Now that the final dual meet is over, A&M will turn its focus to the 2020 SEC Championships in Auburn, Alabama on Feb. 18-22.