Air Force Men Conclude Day Two at Toshiba Classic

Nov. 20, 2009

LONG BEACH, Calif. - With several top-eight finishes on the second day of competition, the Air Force men's swimming team remains in third place at the Toshiba Classic, hosted by UC San Diego at the Belmont Plaza Olympic Pool. After a total of 12 events, the Falcons have 608 team points, trailing just second-ranked Stanford (1377.8) and Hawaii (719).

Once again, junior Benjamin Gunn (Gainesville, Ga.) was the top individual performer for Air Force, finishing as the runner-up in the 100 backstroke. His time of 49.67 in the finals of the event ranks as the third-fastest in Academy history. Meanwhile, he also posted the Falcons' fastest time in the 100 butterfly, with a preliminary mark of 49.59, but did not swim in the finals of the event.

Also finishing in the top eight of the 100 back was freshman Paul Young (Lakeville, Minn.), who clocked in at 51.35, while two other Falcons--Matt Millikin (Fr., Pittsburgh, Pa.) and Nathan Erickson (So., Moraga, Calif.) placed ninth and 15th, respectively, in the event.

In the 200 free, freshman Jon Jones (Highlands Ranch, Colo.) clocked in with a preliminary time of 1:39.27 before finishing seventh overall. His preliminary mark currently ranks as the sixth-fastest in school history. Meanwhile, also placing in the top 16 were Sean O'Keefe (Sr., Lake Oswego, Ore.) and Eric Robinson (Jr., Lakewood, Colo.) in 11th and 15th place, respectively.

Junior Josh Hammervold (Sugar Land, Texas) captured seventh place in the 100 breaststroke, clocking in with a time of 56.67, while Cody Deacon (So., Portland, Ore.) and Greg Edmonds (Sr., Fairfax Station, Va.) placed 11th and 16th, respectively.

Meanwhile, in the 400 IM, Tom Hansen (Jr., Berkeley Heights, N.J.) captured eighth place after registering a preliminary mark of 4:00.80. Also placing in the top 16 in the event were Mark Hansen (Fr., Berkeley Heights, N.J.), who finished 10th overall, and Erickson, who took 16th place.

The top scorer for Air Force in the 100 butterfly was senior Chris Morin (Crown Point, Ind.), who placed 11th with a mark of 49.80. Also finishing in the top 16 of that event was freshman Anthony Chiaro (Tucson, Ariz.), who placed 15th.

Air Force also had strong showings in both of its relay events. In the 800 freestyle relay, the team of Mark Hansen, O'Keefe, Jones and Gunn placed third with a time of 6:45.11. Meanwhile, Gunn, Hammervold, Morin and Chiaro combined for a mark of 1:32.31 in the 200 medley relay to finish fourth in that event.

The final day of competition at the Toshiba Classic is slated to begin tomorrow at 9:00 a.m. (PT).

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