Air Force Men Head to Arizona for Tri-Meet

Falcons face No. 4 Arizona, Washington

  • print
  • email
  • font +
  • font -
  • rss

Dec. 31, 2008

The Air Force men's swimming team returns to action this weekend, Jan. 2, with a tri-meet versus Arizona and Washington.

Last Time Out...
The Air Force men's swimming team was last in action at the Nike Cup, hosted by UC Irvine, Nov. 20-22. The Falcons finished second overall, behind MWC foe UNLV.

Winning races for the Falcons were seniors Bryan Avery (200 free) and Kai Yamashiro (200 back). In addition, several new entries were made into the Air Force record books. Avery (200 IM), Benjamin Gunn (200 IM), Robert Dawson (50 free), Tom Hansen (1000 free, 1650 free, 200 back) and Spencer Butt (200 breast) all moved into or up the Academy's list of top-10 fastest times.

Scouting the Falcons...
The Air Force men's swimming team, which enters this weekend with a 5-5 dual record, has seven athletes who rank in the top five in the Mountain West Conference in their respective events, led by senior captain Bryan Avery, who holds the conference's fastest time in the 200 IM, while also ranking second in the 200 freestyle.

Sophomore Benjamin Gunn ranks second in both the 200 IM and 100 butterfly and third in the 200 fly. Senior Kai Yamashiro holds the second-fastest time in the MWC in the 200 backstroke. Junior Sean O'Keefe ranks fourth in both the 500 and 1650 freestyle events, while Hansen rates fifth in the league in the 1650 free. In the 200 breaststroke, two Air Force swimmers rank in the top five, with senior Spencer Butt holding the fourth-fastest time in the league, while sophomore Josh Hammervold ranks fifth.

 

 

Scouting the Wildcats...
The Arizona men's swimming team, tied for fourth in the national rankings, enters the weekend with an 0-1 dual record.

The Wildcats have several swimmers who rank amongst the top five in the nation in their respective events. Bryan O'Connor holds the second-fastest time in the 200 IM, while also ranking third in the 200 backstroke. Jean Basson ranks second in the 500 freestyle and fourth in the 200 free, while Marcus Titus ranks second in the 100 breast and fourth in the 200 breast. Jack Brown is second in the 400 IM and fifth in the 200 IM, while Alexander Tipton (third in the 200 fly) and John Tapp (fourth in the 200 back) are also ranked amongst the top five in the nation.

Scouting the Huskies...
The Washington men's swimming team enters this weekend with a 5-3 dual record and has a pair of swimmers who rank among the top five in the Pac-10 in their respective events. Scott Spansail leads the Pac-10 in the 1000 free and is second in the 1650 free, while Russell Mahan ranks fifth in the conference in the 100 breast.

In the Air Force Record Books...
At the Nike Cup, several Falcons made entries into the Air Force record books. Sophomore Tom Hansen led the way with three new top times. His 1000 free-split of 9:31.35 ranks seventh in Air Force history, while his mark of 15:46.60 in the 1650 free ranks eighth in the Falcons' record books. He also posted a time of 1:50.56 in the 200 backstroke, ranking ninth in Academy history.

Senior Spencer Butt moved into sixth place on the Air Force top 10 list in the 200 breaststroke with a mark of 2:03.80. Senior Bryan Avery (1:51.05) and sophomore Benjamin Gunn (1:51.10), rate ninth and 10th, respectively in the 200 IM, while sophomore Robert Dawson is now tied for 10th place in the 50 free with a mark of 20.85.

Air Force Athlete of the Week...
Senior Bryan Avery was named the Air Force Athlete of the Week on Nov. 24, for his performance at the Nike Cup. Avery helped lead the Falcons to a second-place finish at the UCI/Nike Cup, notching two individual top-10 finishes, including one of two individual victories for the Falcons, while also swimming on two fourth-place relays.

Avery, a native of Mililani, Hawaii, captured first place in the 200 freestyle, turning in a season-best mark of 1:39.09. He also finished third in the 200 IM, after clocking a time of 1:51.05 in the preliminaries, which ranks ninth all-time in Air Force history. He also anchored the 400 medley relay team and swam the third leg of the 400 free relay, both of which recorded season-best marks for the Falcons.

Up Next...
The Falcons' men's and women's swimming and diving teams open up the spring semester next weekend, Jan. 9, with a home meet versus Incarnate Word. The dual is slated to begin at 4:30 p.m. at Cadet Natatorium.

Complete Release in PDF Format Get Acrobat Reader

 

AF Athletics Men's Swimming

The appearance of advertisements on this site does not constitute an endorsement by the Department of Air Force or any other part of federal government of the products or services advertised.