The Texas A&M men’s swim team will travel to Austin, Texas on Thursday to compete in the American Short Course Championships. This is the Aggies’ last chance to qualify for the upcoming NCAA Championships.
The men hold a 7-1 season record, with a 2-1 record in Southeastern Conference action. The Aggies are coming off a second place finish at the SEC Championships behind the University of Florida.
During the SEC Championships, four Aggies and a relay team set new school records. Junior Angel Martinez lowered the 200 fly school record to 1:41.56 with his second-place finish. Senior Mauro Castillo beat his own record in the 100 breast with his second-place effort in 52.11.
Junior Austin Van Overdam broke the school record in the 400 IM twice. He first lowered it to 3:43.76 in the prelims, then broke it again in the finals with his sixth-place time of 3:43.35. Senior Brock Bonetti also broke a school record in both prelims and finals. Bonetti finished in 1:42.48 in the 200 IM prelims, then posted a 1:42.32 finish to break his own school record.
The 400 medley relay team, composed of Martinez, Castillo, Bonetti, and sophomore Adam Koster, set a school record with their second-place finish in 3:05.13, which was two seconds faster than the previous record. This also marked the program’s highest relay finish since joining the SEC.
Seven Aggies also posted lifetime best times during the five-day meet. Castillo lowered his best time in the 100 fly by over a second, grabbing second place in 45.63. Martinez notched a lifetime best in the same race, placing third in 46.69.
Koster added two best times in the 50 and 100 free. He lowered his lifetime best time in the 50 free twice, with a 19.48 prelim finish and a 19.45 finish in the finals to earn fifth place. He placed tenth in the 100 free with a time of 43.08.
Van Overdam notched a lifetime best in the 200 IM with 1:43.54. Freshman Tanner Olson notched a lifetime best in the 100 breast with 53.01. Junior Steven Richardson earned a best time in the 200 free with 1:35.97.
Sophomore Anthony Kim lowered his personal best time in the 200 back with a prelim time of 1:41.49 and a final time of 1:41.87. Kim also notched a lifetime best time with 46.18 in the 100 back.
The American Short Course Championships kick off March 1 and will continue through March 3.