Union men’s swimming and diving collects 18 top-three finishes at the King Invite
Kingsport, Tenn. - The Union Commonwealth University men's swimming and diving team competed at the King Invite.
UCU faced off against NCAA Division II and III teams, as well as various NAIA programs this past weekend. The Bulldogs finished second overall with 18 top-three finishes and are now ranked 4th in the NAIA and 1st in the AAC.
Two Union swimmers broke school records during the meet, click here to learn more.
Day One
The Bulldogs took second place in the 200-yard freestyle relay with Jaedon Lynch, Cezary Leiman, Zsombi Sipaki, and Enzo Constable finishing in 1:24.88.
In the 500-yard freestyle, Abel Eszenyi and Gergely Török both achieved their first NAIA Championship provisional qualifying times, finishing back-to-back. Eszenyi won with a time of 4:37.62, while Török came in second at 4:45.72.
Malik Biad also earned his first NAIA Championship provisional qualifying time in the 200-yard IM, finishing second in 1:55.80.
Enzo Constable won the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 20.37 seconds, while Cezary Leiman finished in 21.86 seconds. Both Bulldogs achieved provisional qualifying times.
In the 400-yard medley relay, the team of Sipaki, Eszenyi, Leiman, and Constable placed first with a time of 3:26.27, and the team of David Muñiz Espin, Dmitrii Bulakh, Biad, and Lynch finished fourth in 3:35.06.
Day Two
In the 400-yard individual medley, Eszenyi and Biad finished back-to-back, both achieving provisional qualifying times. Eszenyi won with a time of 4:07.28, and Biad was second at 4:07.43.
Similarly, in the 100-yard breaststroke, Lynch placed second with a time of 58.77, while Bulakh was close behind in third at 58.93, both also securing provisional qualifying times.
Constable and Leimann both achieved provisional qualifying times in the 100-yard butterfly, with Constable finishing first in 48.73 seconds and Leiman third in 51.80 seconds.
In the 100-yard backstroke, Sipaki secured fourth place with a time of 52.55 seconds, also earning a provisional qualifying time. Additionally, Sipaki, along with Lynch, Constable, and Leiman, won the 200-yard medley relay in 1:33.20.
Constable and Leiman each earned a provisional time in the 100-yard freestyle. Constable took first place with a time of 45.28 while Leiman had a time of 48.04.
In the 200-yard breaststroke, two Bulldogs had top-five finishes. Eszenyi took first with yet another provisional qualifying time of 2:03.95. Bulakh took fourth place with a time of 2:12.92.
Biad added another provisional qualifying time in the 200-yard butterfly. He took first place in 1:53.11. Lynch took a third place finish in the 100-yard IM with a time of 54.05.
The final first-place finish was achieved in the 400-yard freestyle relay, where Muñiz Espin, Leiman, Sipaki, and Constable recorded a time of 3:07.93.
Next up for Union men's swimming and diving is an away meet against the University of the Cumberlands on Friday, Oct. 18, at 5:00 p.m.