The Hope College men's swimming & diving team placed second in two relays during Thursday's preliminary session at the Michigan Intercollege Athletic Association Swimming & Diving Championships at Holland Community Aquatic Center.
The Flying Dutchmen will be seeded second in the 200-yard freestyle and 400 medley relays for tonight's finals at begin at 5:30 p.m.
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Hope's 200 freestyle relay of junior Trevor Billinghurst of Spring Lake, Michigan (Spring Lake HS), sophomore Jonathon Maat of Holland, Michigan (Holland HS), freshman Mike Wurster of Indianapolis, Indiana (Brebeuf Jesuit Prep), and junior Samuel Gallmeyer of Grand Rapids, Michigan (East Grand Rapids HS), was runner-up with a time of 1 minute, 27.16 seconds.
The 400 medley relay of sophomore Christian Otteman of Zeeland, Michigan (Zeeland East HS), freshman Nick Olen of Midland, Michigan (Lyons Township HS), junior Nathan Rommel of Overland Park, Kansas (Blue Valley NW), and senior Erick Skaff of Flint, Michigan (Carman-Ainsworth HS), had a second-place effort of 3:36.17.
Sophomore Jean-Luc Miralda of Tegucigalpa, Honduras (Honduras American HS), also finished second in 1-meter diving and will compete in tonight's finals. He had a school-record, six-dive score of 485.05 points during preliminaries Wednesday.
Miralda passed the old championship mark of 457.6 held by Jim Mitchell since 1990.
Freshman Kevin Franz of Mundelein, Illinois (Mundelein HS), will join Miralda in the final. He had a fourth-place of 453.50.
The Flying Dutchmen qualified two for the 500 freestyle championship final: junior Duncan MacLean of Grand Rapids, Michigan (East Grand Rapids HS), in third at 4:42.29 and freshman Charlie Emmert of Grand Blanc, Michigan (Flint Powers Catholic HS), in sixth at 4:48.14.
Senior Grant Ludema of Ada, Michigan (Grand Rapids Christian HS), made the consolation final in 11th at 4:58.42.
Four Hope swimmers advanced to the consolation final in the 200 individual medley: junior Jeff Zita of Holland, Michigan (Holland Christian HS), in ninth at 1:58.28, senior Christopher Waechter of Ventura, California (Foothill Technology), in 11th at 1:58.71, Rommel in 15th at 2:00.32 and Maat in 16th at 2:00.34.
Sophomore Ryan Johnson of Milford, Michigan (International Academy), will swim in the 50 freestyle final after clocking a time of 21.54 during preliminaries.
Two teammates reached the consolation final: Gallmeyer in 12th at 21.92 and Billinghurst in 14th at 21.97.
Hope is in third in the MIAA Championship standings with 32 points heading into tonight's finals. Albion (40) is in first, while Calvin (34) is second.
