31 / 48
inside.hokiesports.com
29
Brandon Fiala graduates in May with degrees in finance and
accounting, but if he wanted to pursue a career in mining, he’d probably
be very successful.
After all, he’s collected a lot of gold and silver over the past four years.
Fiala won two gold medals and a silver medal at the ACC Men’s
Swimming and Diving Championships held in Atlanta on Feb.
27-March 2, lifting the Hokies to a fourth-place finish in the team
competition—Tech’s eighth straight top-four finish.
NC State won the team title, with Louisville finishing second and
Notre Dame coming in third just 40 points ahead of the Hokies.
“I am proud of this men’s team, and everything they represent,” Tech
head coach Ned Skinner said. “They gave us 100 percent, and we have no
regrets. That team race for third was tight, and even though we ended up
in fourth, we have so much in which to be proud. We are very proud of
our seniors and what they mean to our program.”
Fiala capped his final ACCmeet by winning the 200-yard breaststroke
on the final day in a school- and ACC-record time of 1 minute, 52.39
seconds. The gold medal marked the fifth of his career—the most ever
by a Tech swimmer or diver.
Fiala also won a gold medal in the 100 breaststroke with a time of
51.51, and he claimed a silver medal in the 200 individual medley with a
time of 1:42.09—the fifth-fastest time in the nation this season.
Robert Owen also enjoyed a tremendous championship meet in his
final ACC competition. He won a gold medal in the 400 IMwith a time of
3:38.43. That time set a school and ACC Championships record and also
ranks as one of the top five times in the nation. Owen came in fourth in
the 200 backstroke and sixth in the 200 IM as well.
Other strong performances came fromMichael Craddock (fifth, 1,650
freestyle), Norbert Szabo (seventh, 200 IM; and eighth, 200 freestyle)
and Zach Switzer (eighth, 400 IM and 200 breaststroke). In the relays,
Tech’s 200 medley team of Jacob Lamparella, Fiala, Harrison Pierce and
Ian Ho led the way, finishing fourth.
Three Tech divers recorded top-eight finishes. Ben Schiesl came
in seventh in the 1-meter event with 319.30 points, while Thomas
Shinholser and Mauro Castro-Silva were fifth (339.45 points) and eighth
(312.85 points), respectively, in the platform event.
On the women’s side, the Hokies, behind gold medal performances
from freshman swimmer Reka Gyorgy and sophomore diver Ashlynn
Peters, came in fifth—the program’s 13th straight top-five finish since
joining the ACC. NC State won the team title, followed by Virginia,
Louisville and North Carolina.
“That was a hard fought fifth-place team finish,” Skinner said. “We
had to pass three top-25 programs in Duke, Notre Dame and Florida
State to do it. Incredible leadership along with very gifted swimmers and
divers is why we excelled.”
Gyorgy claimed gold in the 400 IM, setting a school record with a time
of 4:04.97. She just missed another medal, finishing fourth in the 200
IM with a time of 1:57.22—also a school record.
Gyorgy became the first Tech women’s swimmer to win an ACC gold
medal since 2013 (Weronika Paluszek, 200 breaststroke and Heather
Savage, 100 butterfly) and just the third freshman to do so (Paluszek,
2013 and Sara Smith, 2006).
Peters won the 3-meter diving event with a score of 365.95 points.
That marked the second-highest score in program history.
Jessica Hespeler and Klaudia Nazieblo also swam well. Hespeler won
a silver medal in the 1,650 freestyle and claimed a bronze in the 200
freestyle, while Nazieblo won a silver medal in the 200 butterfly, came in
fourth in the 200 backstroke and fifth in the 100 backstroke. In addition
to their strong performances, senior Fiona Donnelly made the finals in
three events. Her best finish was sixth in the 200 IM, and she came in
eighth in both the 400 IM and the 200 backstroke.
Of Tech’s relay contingents, the 800 freestyle quartet of Hespeler,
Donnelly, Adriana Grabski and Nazieblo recorded the best finish,
coming in fourth.
Those from both Tech teams who qualify will compete at the NCAA
Championships in mid-to-late March.
TECH MEN COME IN FOURTH, WOMEN FIFTH
AT
ACC
SWIMMING AND DIVING
CHAMPIONSHIPS
Brandon Fiala caps ACC competition
with two more gold medals, giving
him a program-best five in his career
by
Jimmy Robertson
Brandon Fiala
was all smiles
after winning the
200 breaststroke
in a school- and
ACC-record time.