BRISTOL, Tenn. – The King University men's swimming team opened the spring semester with a tri-meet against Mars Hill University and Lees-McRae College for their first competitive action of 2021. King's men's team placed first among the three teams that were in action. The Tornado were led by strong performances from
Jan Kuljak and
Dale Bruce.
THE BASICS
KING RESULTS: King 119, Mars Hill 74; King 105, Lees-McRae 98
LOCATION: Tennessee High School; Bristol, Tenn.
RECORDS: King 3-1
HOW IT HAPPENED
- The Tornado started off the day by placing third in the 200 yard medley relay. The team of Maximillian Thomas, Carson Eliasen, Bruce and Haakon Meyer posted final time of 1:40.37.
- Kuljak began his impressive day with a dominating win in the 1000 yard freestyle, winning by over 35 seconds.
- Bruce picked up a second-place finish in the 200 yard freestyle with a time of 1:47.51.
- Meyer and Thomas took second and third in the 50 yard freestyle event.
- Gideon Bezuidenhout placed fourth in the 200 yard individual medley with a time of 2:09.04.
- Bruce took the crown in the 100 yard butterfly with a posted time of 52.83 seconds.
- Austin Bynum finished eighth in the same event with a time of 1:07.06.
- Kuljak picked up his second of three victories on the day in the 100 yard freestyle. He posted a time of 49.62.
- Logan Dillow finished eighth in the 100 yard freestyle with a time of 58.88 seconds.
- Kuljak completed his hat trick of event wins after securing the top spot in the 500 yard freestyle event.
- Eliasen posted a time of 1:04.50 to finish fourth in the 100 yard breaststroke.
- The Tornado ended the day with a second-place finish in the 400 yard freestyle relay. The quartet of Kuljak, Bezuidenhout, Thomas and Radu Magdas finished with a time of 3:21.11.
QUOTABLE
"Some great racing today against some good teams. We fought hard and supported each other from the sideline, pulling out some hard-fought victories and gaining key points. Learning how to buy into the team concept takes humility and trust, but I feel like we are in a better place than we were a year ago, despite having a smaller team. We have been training hard in the pool and weight room and learning what our strengths and weaknesses are as people outside the pool. Through this process we are gaining an identity as a team that is evolving every day with every decision we make. I am thoroughly enjoying coaching this team, and I look forward to continuing to work with this team and explore what God has in store for us."
-King University Head Coach James Graves
UP NEXT
- The Tornado will return to action on Friday when they travel to Milligan University. The meet will begin at 6:00 p.m.
