Barton Men's Swimming finishes fourth at the NJCAA National Championships #GoBarton

The Barton Community College men's swimming team made a strong push to close out the 2023 season at the NJCAA Championships with a solid 4th place finish.

Competing in four grueling days at Burt Flickinger Athletic Center in Buffalo, New York, the men held steady in the 4th position in each day, compiling 460 points, 173.5 behind 3rd place Iowa Central and 113 points ahead of Iowa Lakes' 347.  Indian River ran away with the expected title with 1274 points with Southwestern Oregon claiming runner-up honor with 796.5 points.

Seven program records went by the wayside as the Cougars placed fourth overall at the 2023 NJCAA National Championships. Barton had 45 scoring performances in the four-day meet with 18 coming in the "A" finals and other 27 recorded in the "B" finals, compiling 46 new personal best times and 24 new program top-10 stoppages.

William McCabe had an impressive debut on the big stage posting the highest individual finish over the week in re-writing the top time in the 200-yard medley with a national-runner up finish (1:51.06). The freshman scored two more medals individually over his other three events swam recording the fifth best stoppage in the 200-yard freestyle (1:41.27) and sixth fastest (4:45.76) in the 500-yard freestyle to help score a 50-point week.

Jethro Irvine garnered top point accumulation for the Cougars scoring 63 points over four individual and four team events with his highest finishes coming in the final day scoring third place outings in the 50-yard butterfly and 100-yard freestyle. Recording the first of two recorded breakers, Irvine posted the top time in Thursday's prelims with a (45.59) in the 100-yard butterfly before touching the wall .30 seconds slower in the evening settling with a fourth-place finish. The sophomore's final program breaker came Saturday in prelims of the 50-yard butterfly clocking a (22.05) while falling .03 seconds off in the evening's session maintaining settling with the third best time (22.08).

Barton's other pair of new program bests came in the long-distance events as Enzo Vogt da Silva clocked the school's top times in the 1000-yard freestyle (9:42.00) and 500-yard freestyle (4:37.53). The sophomore concluded his final Cougar nationals scoring a team second best 59-point output fueled behind his pair of bronze medals in the 1000 and 1650-yard freestyle.

In the team events, the Cougars rewrote a pair of program top times. Concluding the opening day with a third-place finish in the 800-freestyle relay, Irvine, McCabe and Vogt da Silva teamed up with Dominik Strba to clock the program's top mark (10:30.94).

The trio would close the book on the season teaming up with Louis Milczynski in the final event of the four days setting the schools top stoppage of (3:02.78) settling for fourth place in the 400-freestyle relay.

Compltes Men's Results*PB denotes Personal Best; SB denotes Season Best
Walker Balicki: 0 points
1000-yard Freestyle: 21st (11:41.12 PB)
50-yard Backstroke: 18th (29.83 PB)
500-yard Freestyle: 17th (5:36.07 SB)
1650-yard Freestyle: 17th (19:40.51 PB)

Luigi Ballivian: 19 points
1000-yard Freestyle: 15th (10:42.69 PB, *10th program fastest)
400-yard Medley: 13th (4:24.65 PB, *8th program fastest)
200-yard Butterfly: 13th (2:01.59 PB)
1650-yard Freestyle: 9th (17:40.28 PB, *7th program fastest)

Rylan Bally: 2 points
50-yard Freestyle: 26th (22.95 PB)
100-yard Medley: 15th (59.10 PB)
50-yard Butterfly: 19th (24.47 PB)
100-yard Freestyle: 22nd (49.99 PB)

Jonathan Beers: 13 points
200-yard Medley: 14th (2:00.47 PB)
400-yard Medley: 15th (4:28.55, Prelims 4:28.03 SB)
100-yard Breaststroke: 15th (59.78, Prelims 59.51 SB)
200-yard Breaststroke: 11th (2:10.60 PB, *7th program fastest)

Brody Feist: 16 points
50-yard Backstroke: 12th (25.52, Prelims 25.48 PB)
200-yard Freestyle: 16th (1:50.93, Prelims 1:48.93)
100-yard Backstroke: 13th (55.80, Prelims 55.64)
200-yard Backstroke: 11th (2:03.85, Prelims 2:02.75 PB, *10th program fastest)

Caleb Gregory: 12 points
50-yard Freestyle: 17th (21.59)
100-yard Butterfly: 13th (51.65 SB)
200-yard Butterfly: 11th (1:58.26 SB)
50-yard Butterfly: 15th (23.57 SB)

Jethro Irvine: 63 points
100-yard Butterfly: 4th (48.89, Prelims 48.59 PB, *SCHOOL RECORD)
100-yard Medley: 3rd (50.60 PB, *2nd program fastest)
50-yard Butterfly: 3rd (22.08, Prelims 22.05 PB, *SCHOOL RECORD)
100-yard Freestyle: 3rd (45.03)

William McCabe: 50 points
200-yard Medley: 2nd (1:51.06 PB *SCHOOL RECORD)
200-yard Freestyle: 5th (1:41.27)
500-yard Freestyle: 6th (4:45.76 PB, *5th program fastest)
100-yard Freestyle: 11th (46.19, Prelims 46.07 PB, *3rd program fastest)

Isaac Meek: 0 points
50-yard Backstroke: 21st (30.63 PB)
200-yard Freestyle: 25th (2:08.59)
100-yard Backstroke: 20th (1:08.02)
200-yard Backstroke: 17th (2:25.48)

Louis Milczynski: 26 points
50-yard Breaststroke: 8th (27.29, Prelims 26.75 PB, 8th program fastest)
50-yard Freestyle: 14th (21.24 PB, *3rd program fastest)
100-yard Butterfly: 17th (52.38)
100-yard Medley: 7th (52.52)

Heath Nickel: 0 points
50-yard Freestyle: 32nd (23.75)
200-yard Freestyle: 21st (1:59.79 PB)
50-yard Butterfly: 25th (27.51 PB)
100-yard Freestyle: 26th (51.58 PB)

Jonathan Santibanez Pizar: 2 points
50-yard Breaststroke: 15th (28.16, Prelims 27.57 PB)
200-yard Medley: 21st (2:09.04)
100-yard Breaststroke: 19th (1:02.98 PB)
200-yard Breaststroke: 22nd (2:26.87)

Dominik Strba: 9 points
1000-yard Freestyle: 11th (10:30.94 PB, *9th program fastest)
400-yard Medley: 16th (4:30.82)
200-yard Breaststroke: 15th (2:16.32, Prelims 2:14.58)

Jake Swan: 9 points
50-yard Breaststroke: 12th (27.18, Prelims 26.84 PB, *9th program fastest)
50-yard Freestyle: 25th (22.90 PB)
100-yard Breaststroke: 13th (59.45 PB)
200-yard Breaststroke: 20th (2:23.97 PB)

Brenden Swindle: 3 points
50-yard Breaststroke: 14th (27.84, Prelims 27.72 PB)
200-yard Medley: 19th (2:08.07)
100-yard Breaststroke: 17th (1:01.27)
200-yasr Breaststroke: 18th (2:18.48)

Javan Titus: 25 points
50-yard Breaststroke: 6th (26.25 PB, *3rd program fastest)
50-yard Freestyle: 24th (22.77 PB)
100-yard Breaststroke: 8th (58.18, Prelims 57.92 PB, *6th program fastest)
200-yard Breaststroke: 16th (2:16.33, Prelims 2:15.14 PB)

Enzo Vogt da Silva: 59 points
1000-yard Freestyle: 4th (9:42.00 PB, *SCHOOL RECORD)
400-yard Medley: 7th (4:11.66 SB)
500-yard Freestyle: 3rd (4:37.53 PB, *SCHOOL RECORD)
1650-yard Freestyle: 3rd (16:17.74 PB, *2nd program fastest)

Relay Results
800-yard Freestyle: Irvine, McCabe, Strba, Vogt da Silva  - 3rd (6:50.60 PB, *SCHOOL RECORD)
200-yard Freestyle: Milczynski, Vogt da Silva, Gregory, McCabe – 4th (1:23.61 PB, *2nd program fastest)
400-yard Medley: Vogt da Silva, Titus, Irvine, Milczynski – 4th (3:26.65 PB, 6th program fastest)
200-yard Medley: Irvine, Titus, McCabe, Milczynski – 4th (1:32.06 PB, *4th program fastest)
400-yard Freestyle: Irvine, Vogt da Silva, Milczynski, McCabe – 4th (3:02.78 PB, *SCHOOL RECORD)