Kingsport, TN – The third-ranked UC men's swimming & diving team notched three straights wins to end the night to move into first place of the Mid-South Conference Championships after two days of competition Friday night. The Patriots recorded a pair of first-second finishes and had had six swims that earned all-conference honors.

In the 100 breast Hunter Eaton dropped almost three seconds off his previous season-best and touched the wall in 57.69 to earn his first MSC conference title.  Eaton edged out teammate Jacob Smith by 0.27 for the top spot as Smith finished runner-up in the event.

The Patriots followed that up with Daric Sundeen and Viktor Lyson taking the top two spots in the 100 back.  Sundeen touched the wall in 50.41 to win the MSC title, while Lyson touched the wall in 50.89 to earn the silver medal.  Nic Cecioni tallied a seventh-place finish in the event (52.70), while Sean Britton won the consolation final with a time of 52.96.  Griffin Bachman (54.19) and Blaise Snowberg (54.89) finished 11^th and 14^th, respectfully.

UC capped off the night with Sundeen, Smith, Lyson and Bryce Pierce teaming up to win the 400 medley relay with a time of 3:25.26. 

Earlier in the night, Lyson notched the Patriots first conference title of the meet as he swam 49.54 to win the 100 fly.  Alex Mashburn went 50.89 to finish fourth in the event, while Sean Britton won the consolation heat with a time of 52.83.  Griffin Bachman placed 13^th with a time of 53.82.

Carl Rogne led a trio of Patriots in the 200 free, placing fifth with a time of 1:45.27.  John Morgan McDonald edged out Pierce for fifth place as the swimmers went 1:45.71 and 1:46.34, respectfully.

UC also had a trio of podium finishes in the 400 IM led by Cole Huggard who placed fourth with a time of 4:09.28.  Joel Westerlind swam 4:12.00 to finish fifth as Alan Senn was one spot back touching the wall in 4:12.81.  Gustavs Baumanis earned seven points for his tenth place finish with a time of 4:21.43.

Cumberland holds an 18.5 points lead over Lindenwood-Belleville, while Loyola is in third with 276 points.  

The Patriots will return to the water Saturday, February 2, when they take part in the final day of competition at the MSC Championships.  Prelims are scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. while finals are slated to start at 5 p.m. Live video of the finals as well as the first heat of the 1650 free will be available here.

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