MINNEAPOLIS – The Gustavus Adolphus College men’s swimming and diving team competed in the MIAC Championship this past week, battling the other five conference teams at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center on the University of Minnesota campus.
The Gusties emerged victorious once again at the championship meet, winning the MIAC title for the seventh year in a row and 28th time in program history. Gustavus led the field with 953 points. Carleton followed as the runner-up with 628.5 points. Saint John’s rounded out the top three teams with 524 points.
Saturday
Declan Vahey and Aidynn Havermann finished first and second in the 200 backstroke. Vahey won the event with a time of 1:51.51 and Havermann was the runner-up by just 0.13 seconds at 1:51.64.
Aiden Carlson led the conference in the 200 breaststroke, winning the race in 2:04.28.
Gustavus won the 400 freestyle relay as the team of Declan Vahey, Logan Cyr, Josh Wallin, and Braden Ripken combined swim the race in 3:04.99.
Mason Deitering led the Gusties in the 1650 freestyle. The first year finished as the runner-up with a time of 16:29.56.
Ripken was the runner-up in the 100 freestyle, leading Gustavus with a time of 46.14.
In the 200 butterfly, Ben Kell (1:53.09) and Britton Patee (1:55.47) placed second and third respectively for the Gusties.
Friday
The 100 breaststroke was the highlight of the night for Gustavus. Braden Ripken won the race with a time of 53.76, setting a new meet record for the MIAC Championship. The Gustie junior broke the previous record of 54.28, set by Gustavus alumnus Tanner Sonnek at the 2019 championship. Brandon Wilcek (56.22) and Aiden Carlson (56.42) followed Ripken in second and third place in the 100 breaststroke as the Gusties took each of the top three places in the event.
Ripken also helped lead Gustavus to victory in the 200 freestyle relay as he, Declan Vahey, Will Sarkinen, and Josh Wallin combined to record a time of 1:23.32; the new top time in the MIAC for this season.
In addition to his success in the relay, Wallin won the 100 backstroke for the Gusties, swimming the race in 50.03. The first year’s winning time set a new personal record and was the fastest time in the event in the MIAC all season.
Logan Cyr won the 200 freestyle, swimming the event in 1:42.01 to set a new PR and the new top time in the conference for 2025-26.
Carlson placed first in the 100 butterfly with a time of 49.66, beating his previous personal record of 50.33 with the fastest MIAC time this winter.
Aidynn Havermann finished as the runner-up in the 400 IM for Gustavus, taking second with a time of 4:04.82.
Thursday
Gustavus made waves in the 200 IM by not only winning the event but by taking each of the top four finishes. Aidynn Havermann led the way, winning the event with a time of 1:52.80. Declan Vahey was the runner-up, finishing in 1:54.04. Ben Kell followed in third, clocking in at 1:54.88. Brandon Wilcek finished fourth at 1:55.27. These four finishes alone netted the Gusties 68 points in a huge swing for the championship leaderboard.
The 400 medley relay team brought home the gold for the Gusties. The squad of Josh Wallin, Braden Ripken, Aiden Carlson, and Logan Cyr won the race with a time of 3:20.46, setting a new top mark for the conference this season.
Ripken also won the 50 freestyle for Gustavus. The junior led the way with a time of 20.70, winning by 0.14 seconds.
Cyr added a second-place finish for the Gusties in the 500 freestyle. The junior swam the race in 4:40.76 to finish as the runner-up.
Wednesday
The Gustavus team of Josh Wallin, Braden Ripken, Aiden Carlson, and Logan Braley won the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:30.28. The Gusties finished far ahead of their competitors in the race with the runner-up Macalester finishing 3.90 seconds later.
Logan Cyr, Declan Vahey, Charles Newton, and Aidynn Havermann won the 800 freestyle relay for the Gusties. The team placed first with a time of 6:50.13, finishing just 0.25 seconds ahead of runner-up Saint John’s.
FINAL TEAM SCORES
1. Gustavus – 953
2. Carleton – 628.5
3. Saint John’s – 524
4. Macalester – 497.5
5. St. Olaf – 426
6. Hamline – 181
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