MINNEAPOLIS - Four Stanford swimmers competed in individual events in finals on day three while Ron Polonsky set a new program record in the 100 breast. The Cardinal maintained its hold on eighth place in the team standings with 112.5 points with one day remaining.
Two of the Cardinal's finals swims took place in the 100 fly with Aaron Sequeira earning a swim in the consolation final while Andrei Minakov competed in the championship final. Sequeira swam the third-fastest 100 fly in program history in prelims, clocking a 44.87, making him just the third Cardinal to get under 45 seconds in the event.
Sequeira ultimately finished eighth in his heat, earning All-America Second Team honors for the first time in his career.
Minakov swam his fastest time of the season, clocking a 44.17 in prelims to earn a third place seed heading into finals. His fourth-place finish secured 15 points for the Cardinal and made him a back-to-back All-American in the event.
Luke Maurer was the Cardinal's lone competitor in the 200 free finals, competing in the consolation heat after an impressive swim this morning. In prelims, Maurer swam the second-fastest 200 free in Stanford history, now trailing only his teammate, Minakov.
Maurer ended up taking fourth in the consolation final, earning All-America Second Team honors.
In the 100 breast, Ron Polonsky narrowly missed out on the championship final, finishing ninth overall in prelims with a time of 51.17. His effort was the best in program history by six tenths of a second, topping John Criste's 2009 record of 51.75.
In the consolation final, Polonsky finished third in the heat with a 51.41. It marked his second individual All-America honor of the meet.
Stanford closed out the finals session with a 3:03.61 in the 400 medley relay, as Leon MacAlister, Ron Polonsky, Andrei Minakov, and Luke Maurer worked together to take seventh place in the third heat. The Cardinal finished 11th overall in the event.
In prelims on Friday, 12 Cardinal competed across the six events. Rick Mihm represented Stanford in the 400 IM, taking 29th overall.
Rafael Gu joined Minakov and Sequeira in the 100 fly, finishing 19th overall, only three spots out of the consolation final.
In the 200 free, Andres Dupont took 25th with a season-best 1:33.21, good for seventh in the Stanford record books. Preston Forst finished 42nd in the event as well.
In the 100 back, Leon MacAlister tied for 16th with a 45.54 in prelims, forcing a swim-off. The senior was out-touched in the extra race by Notre Dame's Tommy Janton, moving MacAlister to 17th.
Aaron Sequeira also competed in the 100 back, taking 18th and just two one-hundredths behind MacAlister. Josh Zuchowski was the third competitor for the Cardinal in the event, finishing 42nd.
On the 3-meter springboard, Jack Ryan finished 24th overall after scoring a 350.70.
Stanford returns to action for the final day of the NCAA Championships tomorrow, competing in the 1,650 free, 200 back, 100 free, 200 breast, 200 fly, and on the platform. The meet concludes with the 400 free relay at the end of finals tomorrow night.
