Notre Dame finished second in a three-team meet over the weekend hosted by Virginia Tech at Christiansburg Aquatic Center in Christiansburg, Virginia.
The Irish faced two conference opponents, the Hokies and Pittsburgh. The Irish fell to Virginia Tech, 237-131, and defeated Pittsburgh, 214-150.
In the 200-yard freestyle relay, the team of freshman Daniel Speers, junior Kevin Bradley, sophomore Justin Plaschka, and freshman Tabahn Afrik finished second in 1:22.63, while the relay team of freshman Daniel Fujan, senior Michael Hudspith, junior Trent Jackson, and sophomore Robert Whitcare finished in 1:25.27 to place fourth.
In the 400-yard individual medley, Bradley led the Irish in fourth place with a final time of 4:01.55, while in the 200-yard backstroke, Whitacre won in 1:48.04.
“The 200 back was a good event for us on Friday night,” Irish head coach Matt Tallman said. “Rob Whitacre had a great race. I don't think we struggled anywhere. We had some decent swims that we came up on the short end related to scoring points, but our times were right where we expected to be at this time of the year.
“We were a little sharper on Saturday. Thursday was a long day of travel and it took us a little while to get into the meet.”
In the 200-yard butterfly, Grauslys won in 1:49:69 and Bradley finished second in 1:51.83, while in the 400-yard freestyle relay, the team of Bradley, Speers, Plaschka, and Afrik took home the win in 3:00.85.
“Our 400 free relay should be one of our strengths this season,” Tallman said. “We have more than four capable guys for that event this year and are excited for the results at the end of the season. Justin is a big part of that relay and his individual events are very important. He knows the impact he has on our team and that he is capable of big things this season.”
The Irish are back in action in two weeks when they will compete at the Boilermaker Invitational from Nov. 20 through Nov. 22.
“The Purdue Invite will be a good test for us,” Tallman said. “There will be quality competition led by the host. We will be up for the challenge and hope to continue improving toward our end of season goals.”
