LONG BEACH -- The 17th-ranked BYU men's swimming team finished in second-place while the women finished seventh after the three day Speedo Cup competition in Long Beach, Calif.
The men were led by senior All-American Arunas Savickas, who dominated the pool all three days. Savickas won the 100, 200 and 500 free events, while also leading the 200 medley and the 400 free relay teams to first-place finishes. His time of 4:21.39 in the 500 free is a new BYU record, breaking his own mark of 4:22.76 set last season. In addition, Savickas helped the 200 free, 400 medley and 800 free relay teams to runner-up finishes.
Also scoring big for BYU was sophomore Gary Tan, who was a runner-up in the 100 back and a third-place finisher in the 200 IM, as well as finishing fourth in the 200 back. Tan also swam on the winning 200 medley and 400 free relay teams. Mike Mullen, Jeff Mason and Nick Tobler also had a good weekend for the Cougars. Mullen finished third in the 50 free and swam on the winning 200 medley and 400 free relay teams. Mason finished fourth in the 50 free and fifth in the 100 free while also swimming on the first-place 400 free relay team. Tobler had a fourth-place finish in the 100 breast and a fifth-place finish in the 200 breast, and swam on the winning 200 medley relay team. BYU racked up 1023 points, good for second-place behind No. 6 USC.
The women also did well, securing seventh-place with a score of 573.50. No. 8 USC also won the women's event. Jennifer Tasker had a good competition for the Cougars, placing fifth in the 100 breast while freshman Tamber Covington finished fifth in the 200 breast. BYU benefited from fifth-place finishes by the 200 free, the 200 medley and the 400 medley relay teams.
The men's and women's swimming and diving teams will resume competition following the holiday break on Jan. 5, 2001, when they will face the University of Washington at 1 p.m. in the Richards Building Pool.
The women's and the 17th-ranked BYU men's swimming teams will travel to California to participate in the annual Speedo Cup competition, Thursday-Saturday. For the men, teams competing include No. 6 USC, Pacific and UC Santa Barbara. On the women's side, teams include No. 1 UCLA, No. 7 USC and Hawaii. The men's and women's diving teams will host the BYU Diving Invitational, Friday and Saturday. The competition starts at 10 a.m. Friday, and 9 a.m. Saturday, at the Richards Building Pool. Teams scheduled to participate include Hawaii, UNLV, Colorado State, Wyoming and Fresno State.
Last Weekend
The men's team remained undefeated (8-0) on the season, beating UNLV 143-98 while the women's team (8-3) lost to the Rebels 130-113. Winners for the men included Arunas Savickas (200 free, 500 free and 400 medley relay), Gary Tan (200 back, 200 IM and 400 medley relay) and Nick Tobler (200 breast and 400 medley relay). Winners for the women included Heidi Lietz (50 free), Amy Mclellan (200 back) and Tamber Covington (200 breast). Aaron Russell won the 1-meter diving event and Viraj Patil took first-place on the 3-meter board. For the women, Kelli Einfeldt won the 3-meter event while Tessa Clark took first on the 1-meter board.
1999 Speedo Cup
In a field of 23 teams, the men's team finished in second-place while the women's team finished fifth. The men were led by Savickas, who won the 100 back and 500 free events while leading the 800 free relay team to a first-place finish. In addition, Savickas took second in the 200 back while helping the 400 free and 400 medley relay teams to runner-up finishes. Tan finished second in the 200 IM and fourth in the 200 back while Rob Morris was a runner-up in the 200 free and a third-place finisher in the 1650 free. For the women, Jennifer Tasker finished third in the 100 breast and fifth in the 200 breast.
Men Swimmers to Watch
Arunas Savickas, senior: Swims back and free. Savickas won the 200 and the 500 free, and swam on the winning 400 medley relay team against UNLV. Has conference-best times in the 200 free (1:37.70) and the 500 free (4:26.54).
Gary Tan, sophomore: Tan won the 200 IM and the 200 back, and swam on the winning 400 medley relay team against UNLV. Has conference-best times in the 200 back (1:48.39) and the 200 IM (1:50.73).
Nick Tobler, freshman: Swims breast. Tobler won the 200 breast and swam on the winning 400 medley relay team. Has conference-best time in the 200 breast (2:05.29).
Women Swimmers to Watch
Heidi Lietz, sophomore: Swims free and fly. Lietz won the 50 free and finished second in the 100 free against UNLV. Has conference-best time in the 50 free (23.81).
Amy Mclellan, freshman: Swims back and free. Mclellan won the 200 back against UNLV. Has conference-best time in the 200 back (2:05.92).
Tamber Covington, freshman: Swims breast and IM. Covington won the 200 breast and finished second in the 200 IM against UNLV. Has conference-best time in the 200 breast (2:17.65).
Divers to Watch
Aaron Russell, sophomore: Russell won the 1-meter event and finished second on the 3-meter board against UNLV. Has conference-best score on the 3M board (528.70).
Viraj Patil, junior: Patil won the 3-meter event and finished second on the 1-meter board against UNLV.
Kelli Einfeldt, sophomore: Einfeldt won the 3-meter event against UNLV. Has conference-best score on the 3M board (457.20).
Tessa Clark, junior: Clark won the 1-meter event against UNLV.
