The Big Ten expanded since last year’s conference championships, but that did not stop Minnesota’s men’s swimming and diving team from finding individual success at the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center.
After an undefeated season at home, Minnesota finished top eight to earn podium honors 14 times, secured conference honors and medaled multiple times in the Big Ten Championships, all without leaving the Twin Cities.
Minnesota’s podium finishes included an eighth-place finish and season-best time of 1:24.26 for the 200m relay squad of Jacob Johnson, Kaiser Neverman, Casey Stowe and Davide Harabagiu.
Going into the championships, Minnesota’s head swimming coach Mike Joyce wanted his team to focus on what they could control individually while keeping the team in mind.
“Although this is a very individualized sport, the team score is always going to reflect the University of Minnesota,” Joyce said.
Minnesota earned its first medal of the championships on day two thanks to Bar Soloveychik’s bronze medal time of 4:12.83 in the 500m freestyle.
Three Gophers earned four Big Ten honors after the championships, with Johnson and diver YuTong Wang named to the All-Big Ten Second Team while Johnson and Joe Polyak made the All-Freshman Team.
Polyak, a three-time individual Iowa state champion in high school, took fifth place in the breaststroke in his final swim of the championships with a time of 1:52.67.
Coincidentally, both Johnson and Polyak were on the U.S. Swimming Junior National Team prior to committing to the Gophers. Joyce said both indirectly helped the Gophers recruit future classes.
Wang was the only diver to win a medal for Minnesota at the championships with a silver medal score of 424.75 in the 3m dive finals. He finished 10th in the 1m dive the day prior.
Johnson and his 400m medley relay teammates Stowe, Joe Rudd and Neverman earned bronze with a school record time of 3:04.55.
In their last year of athletic eligibility, both Stowe and Neverman took on roles as captains at the start of the season.
“They have very different personalities, but our team culture thrives because of those differences,” Joyce said.
Day three of competition concluded with the Big Ten naming swimmer Tommy McCarthy an honoree for the 2025 Big Ten Sportsmanship award.
On the final day of competition, Johnson, who broke his own school record for the 200m butterfly twice at the championships, earned a silver medal with a time of 1:40.47.
Joyce said Johnson’s versatility makes him a fierce competitor in both butterfly and freestyle events.
“He’s here for the right reasons,” Joyce said. “He found a home here thanks to our coaches, our team and the University’s academic offerings.”
With a final team score of 1579, Indiana won their seventh conference championship over the past nine years, while Michigan and Ohio State placed second and third, respectively.
Minnesota placed fifth for the third consecutive season, but this season’s field included nine teams because of the addition of the University of Southern California (USC).
Although the program’s next team competition will be the NCAA Championships from March 26-29, select divers compete in the NCAA Zone Diving Regionals from March 10-12.
