McKim wins 100 breaststroke, Storm solid at opening meet
AUGSBURG – Kyle McKim, Nathan Schneider and Tyler Burdick each turned in a top-three finish to lead the Simpson men's swimming team at the season-opening Augsburg Pentathlon on Saturday, Oct. 20.
McKim won the 100-yard breaststroke, Burdick placed third in the same event and Schneider took third in the 100-yard freestyle as the Storm finished third in the three-team meet with 293 points. Hamline won the meet (446) and Macalester got second (311).
"The pentathlon was a great way to kick off our season," interim head coach Eric Crawford said. "I got to see the team swim in events they normally wouldn't."
McKim's time of 1:07.93 was less than 3-tenths of a second away from the school record in the 100 breaststroke. Burdick was a few seconds back in 1:11.27.
The duo of freshmen McKimm and Burdick led a group of five freshmen and first-year swimmers who hit the water for the Storm. Freshman James Tillison had eighth-place finishes in the 100 butterfly (1:04.57) and 100 freestyle (57.52), freshman Scott Wailes had his best performance in the 100 freestyle, placing 12th (58.31) and transfer Etienne Clerc placed 16th in the 100 breaststroke.
"Our freshman class stepped it up at the meet," Crawford said. "They all had races that really were amazing to watch."
A sophomore, Schneider touched the wall in 54.93 in the 100 freestyle. He added a fourth-place effort in the 100 butterfly, finishing in 1:02.21.
"We are a bigger team this year but still small in comparison to other schools," Crawford said of the squad size. Seven swimmers made the trip on opening weekend. "The point total at this meet does not justify the type of team we are. What we lack in numbers, we make up for in speed. I am really proud of their performance."
Simpson is off until Nov. 16 when it opens Iowa Conference competition with a dual at Loras. Start time is set for 6 p.m.
