http://www.miac-online.org/news/2012/2/16/MSWIM_0216121924.aspx

MINNEAPOLIS -- The 2012 MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships got off to a tremendous start Thursday morning at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center. One meet record fell and several other standout performances highlighted the first round of preliminary races.

Carleton's Erik Klontz stole the show Thursday morning in the first session of the weekend, setting a new meet record and meeting the NCAA 'A' Qualifying standard for the National Championships in the 50-yard freestyle. Klontz touched the wall in just 20.18, which is 0.01 faster than the previous MIAC Championship record of 20.19, recorded by St. Thomas' Peter Mullee in 2009.

The overall MIAC record in the event is 20.03, set by Saint John's Matt Zelen in 1999, so Klontz will shift his sights to a MIAC Championship and Zelen's mark in Thursday evening's finals session.

Complete Session 1 Results (attached)

In the women's 50-yard freestyle, another Carleton swimmer impressed by beating a talented duo from two-time defending champion Gustavus. Sophie Pilhofer finished first in the prelim with a time of 23.82. The Gusties' Kelsey Lucia - the event's defending champion and holder of the top time heading into the meet - finished second in 23.92, and Lucia's teammate Katie Olson was literally a fraction of a second behind in third at 23.93. All three swimmers met the NCAA 'B' qualifying standard.

Another highlight from Thursday's prelims came in the women's 500-yard freestyle, as Gustavus' Alissa Tinklenberg , who had the top time thus far in 2011-12, edged out defending event champion Meghan Weiss from St. Olaf by less than a second. Tinklenberg finished in 5:03.19, followed closely by Weiss at 5:03.80, and both met the NCAA 'B' standard with their performances.

The defending team champion St. Olaf men looked strong in the 200-yard individual medley with Michael Gratz (1:52.34) narrowly edging out teammate Colby Kubat (1:54.74) as the Oles claimed the top two spots. St. Thomas' Sam Rauchwarter finished first in the men's 500-yard freestyle preliminaries with a time of 4:39.56, and St. Catherine's Steffanie Jurusik continued her terrific season in the women's 200-yard individual medley by winning the prelim in 2:09.66.

On the diving boards, there were a pair of standout performances for each gender. Macalester's Renee' Jordan (250.15) took the lead in the women's 3-meter diving event, but is followed closely by St. Thomas' Jennifer Easton (243.15). Meanwhile, on the men's 1-meter board, the Tommies' Nick Johnson - who entered the MIAC Championships with the top score in the event this season, took the lead with a score of 472.65, while St. Olaf's Ian Straehley also had a strong showing at 424.00.

The 2012 MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships continue Thursday evening with the first finals session of the event. Doors open at 5:30 p.m. with diving starting at 6:30 p.m. and swimming events beginning at 7 p.m. The events on the Session 2 schedule are: men's 1-meter diving, 200-freestyle relay, 500-freestyle, 200-yard individual medley, 50-yard freestyle and 400-yard medley relay.

The MIAC's live scoring updates experienced some technical difficulties during Thursday's preliminary session, but they appear to be working now and will be monitored closely throughout the event. The MIAC and Webcast America have also teamed up to provide a live Webcast of all six sessions. Links to the live stats, live broadcast, full championship information, results, schedules and more are all available on the 2012 MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships home page.