Pitt’s Vera, van der Laan Earn More Medals as ACC Meet Concludes

Wednesday, February 24

Greensboro, N.C.

TBA

Pitt

ACC Men's Championships

Pitt’s Vera, van der Laan Earn More Medals as ACC Meet Concludes

2/27/2021 8:30:00 PM | Swimming & Diving

Full Meet Results

GREENSBORO, N.C.—The University of Pittsburgh produced two more ACC men's swimming medalists on Saturday evening as the 2021 ACC Championships concluded at the Greensboro Aquatic Center.

Pitt senior Blaise Vera from Clinton, Miss., continued to etch his name in program history by winning his third ACC medal, this time for finishing third in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 42.21. Vera became just the second Pitt swimming and diving student-athlete to earn three ACC medals since the program entered the conference in 2013-14, joining legendary diver Dominic Giordano.

Pitt junior Cooper van der Laan, a native of Gold Coast, Australia, brought home his second bronze medal in as many nights, claiming third in the 200-yard breaststroke. van der Laan absolutely crushed Pitt's previous school record in the event, lowering it by over two seconds to 1:52.76.

This week marked the first time in Pitt swimming and diving history that multiple Panthers earned multiple medals at the ACC Championships.

"In a strange year in which we were just happy to compete, we're really excited about what we were able to accomplish at ACCs," Pitt head coach John Hargis said. "This conference has taken off and it is now the toughest league in the country. To have two student-athletes stepping on the podium twice each is a testament to how special Blaise and Cooper are. We're thrilled for them."

"That success is a testament to where this program is going and how hard we're working," Hargis added. "Advancing to finals, stepping on ACC podiums and qualifying for NCAAs – that's the expectation now. We believe we're capable of scoring at NCAAs in a few events in a couple weeks, so we'll begin preparing for that. And then it's on to the Olympic mindset for several of our athletes. I can't thank my coaching staff and this team enough for the hard work they've put in. The future is very bright."

Both Vera and van der Laan have secured trips to the 2021 NCAA Championships, which will be held back at the Greensboro Aquatic Center from March 24-27.

Pitt, which finished the 2021 ACC Men's Swimming and Championships in ninth place with 453 points, was well represented in ACC final heats on Saturday in Greensboro.

Wojciech Dutkowiak (15th, 15:18.73), Warren Briggs (18th, 15:21.71) and Ryan Schonbachler (23rd, 15:29.55) each scored for the Panthers in the 1,650-yard freestyle mile.

Freshman Marcin Goraj opened his ACC scoring account by placing 21st in the 200-yard backstroke in 1:44.68, while underclassmen Jerry Chen (16th, 1:57.40), Javier Zorzano (21st, 1:58.29) and Flynn Crisci (23rd, 1:59.02) tallied team points for Pitt in the 200-yard breaststroke as well.

Two Panthers finished in the top 15 of the 200-yard butterfly, with Armin Remenyi taking 10th in 1:44.61 and Serhii Ahadzhanian placing 15th in 1:47.00.

In the final event of the meet, Pitt's 400-yard freestyle relay – Blaise Vera, Dominic Toledo, Armin Remenyi and Serhii Ahadzhanian – finished ninth with a time of 2:54.92.

Several other Pitt men's swimmers were in action in each of Saturday's individual prelims as well.

In the 200-yard backstroke, Stephen Hopta (26th, 1:46.20) and Judd Fishman (31st, 1:48.03) nearly advanced. Then Dominic Toledo (37th, 44.93), Ellis Cannon (44th, 45.31) and Szymon Pytlarczyk (46th, 45.98) represented the Panthers in the 100-yard freestyle.

Cameron Dafoe (33rd, 2:03.03) competed in the 200-yard breaststroke, as did Ryan Schonbachler (32^nd, 1:49.61), Judd Fishman (33rd, 1:49.84) and Owen McLaughlin (35th, 1:50.42) in the 200-yard butterfly.

The Pitt swimming & diving season will continue at NCAA events in the coming weeks.

Numerous Pitt divers will attempt to qualify for NCAA Championships at the NCAA Zone A Diving Meet in Greensboro from March 11-13.

Then the NCAA Championships return to the Greensboro Aquatic Center in consecutive weeks with the women slated to compete from March 17-20 and the men set to perform from March 24-27.

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