Texas A&M
SMU Classic
Aggies Begin Competition at SMU Classic
Oct 07, 2022 | Men's Swimming and Diving
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DALLAS – The Texas A&M men's swimming & diving team began competition at the SMU Classic on Friday night. The Aggies currently sit in fourth with a score of 143, while the University of Texas leads the event with 174 points through day one.
"As expected, this is a great meet with lots of competition across the board. We are way ahead of where we were at this same meet last year, but there were too many races decided by hundredths of a second that we were on the wrong end of," said head coach Jay Holmes. "Some of our better events are tomorrow, and we will need to make sure we get on the right side of those touches to make up some ground."
The Maroon & White started the meet with a pair of second-place finishes. Exploding off the block, Ethan Gogulski swam a 100 back lead off time of 46.24 with Andres Puente, Connor Foote and Kaloyan Bratanov contributing as they clocked a 3:08.49 in the 400 medley relay. Anze Fers Erzen added another top-two finish for the Aggies after going 3:44.42 in the 400 IM.
Bratanov posted a 1:36.32 in the 200 free, placing fourth, but Baylor Nelson stole the show in his collegiate debut, registering a personal best, 1:34.76. Nelson's B final time was the third-fastest in the event overall.
Foote had an impactful first meet as he added double-digit points for the Aggies with a time of 20.07 in the 50 free and 47.29 in the 100 fly. Puente added a third-place finish in the 100 breast, swimming a 52.87.
The Aggies capped off the meet with a top-five finish in the 800 free relay as Bratanov, Maximiliano Vega, Nelson and Thomas Shomper recorded a time of 6:31.77.
"The swim of the day was probably Baylor [Nelson] winning the B heat of the 200 free. But as soon as I say that, Anze [Fers Erzen] in the 400 IM, Andres' [Puente] 52 in the 100 breast and Ethan [Gogulski] in the 100 back as the lead off on the 400 medley relay were all pretty awesome too," Holmes added.
Sophomore Rhett Hensley qualified for NCAA Zones on the 1-meter in his first competition of the season with a score of 306.90.
The Aggies will close out the SMU Classic Saturday at 11 a.m. For updates and results, follow along on Twitter.
Visit 12thman.com for more information on Texas A&M men's swimming & diving. Fans can keep up to date with the Aggies Facebook, Instagram, and on Twitter by following @AggieSwimDive.
Players Mentioned
