COMPLETE RESULTS

FORT LAUDERDALE, Fla. - The Nova Southeastern swimming and diving teams concluded the four-day second annual Shark Invitational Sunday at the NSU Aquatic Center. The No. 9 men’s team took second place with 1,205 points while the No. 14 women claimed second with 1,289.5 points.

Individually, Erin Black (Jr., Fort Myers, Fla.) and Jonas Grundstrom (Sr., Fagersta, Sweden) both took home the Michael D. Fish Outstanding Performer awards. Black finished the meet with a total of 103 points while Grundstrom finished with 101 points. Each swimmer had to clinch the award with victories on the last day, as Ashley Bransford (So., Santa Cruz, Aruba) and Oskar Nordstrand (Jr., Stockholm, Sweden) were both within single-digits of them.

The preliminary session started with the 100-yard freestyle. On the women’s side, both Bransford and Linea Cutter (Fr., Coral Springs, Fla.) qualified for the finals by finishing in under 55 seconds. In the men’s 100-freestyle, Armin Hornikel (Sr., Goose Creek, S.C.) and William Bunge (Sr., Springfield, Mo.) each qualified with NCAA B-cut times of 46.70 and 46.95, respectively. Esau Simpson (So., St. David’s, Grenada) received the last spot in the evening’s finals.

The women’s team went on to dominate the 200-yard backstroke. Black and Lauren Chapple ( Fr. London, England) took the top two preliminary times as Black clocked in at 2:04.49 and Chapple finished in 2:05.70. Both were B-cut times with Black’s claiming the program record. Kelli Swanson (Fr., Palm Harbor, Fla.) and Ashley Aranda (Sr., Kenner, La.) also qualified for the final, coming in under 2:09. Black would be scratched out of the final, allowing Devan Martin (Jr., Duluth, Ga.) to move up from the B-final.

The men also performed well in the 200-backstroke as three Sharks qualified for the finals. Josh Davis (So., Huron, S.D.) led the way with a B-cut time of 1:42.34 and joined teammates Oscar Aldabe (So., Alicante, Spain) and Nordstrand in the final.

Ewa Jamborska (Sr., Katowice, Poland) capped off a solid weekend as she claimed the top preliminary spot in the women’s 200-yard breaststroke with a B-cut time of 2:22.17. She would be scratched from the final, but Bransford stepped in as one of the top contenders for the final as she qualified with a B-cut time of 2:24.59. On the men’s side, Hornikel set a B-cut time of 2:07.17 and qualified for the final alongside Jonathan Key (So., Biltmore Lakes, N.C.) and Cameron Pfahler (Jr., Neptune Beach, Fla.).

In the evening’s finals, Black took another victory as she won the women’s 1650-yard freestyle. Black destroyed her previous team record by over 30 seconds, clocking in at 17:06.47. She was six seconds short of another A-cut time. Kelsea Smith (Jr., Edina, Fla.), who had the slowest seed time in lane 10, had a great performance as she finished with a B-cut time of 17:51.32. She claimed third place overall.

In the men’s mile race, Grundstrom won with a time of 15:46.95, a B-cut time and a Shark Invite record. The Sharks dominated the race as Nordstrand, Cameron Chambers (Jr., St. Petersburg, Fla.) and Chris Norris (So., Tallahassee, Fla.) helped claim four out of the top five spots. All four Sharks claimed B-cut times in the event.

In the women’s 100-freestyle, Bransford took the top spot among her teammates as she claimed eighth place with a time of 54.10. In the men’s 100-freestyle, Simpson was the top Shark as he finish in fifth place with a B-cut time of 46.23.

With Black out of the 100-backstroke, Chapple filled the gap by winning in clear fashion. Her B-cut time of 2:03.70 was a new program record and just a few seconds short of an automatic qualifying time. Davis put up a strong performance in his 100-backstroke. He posted a B-cut time of 1:50.31, good for fourth place in the final.

Bransford once again led all Sharks in the 200-breaststroke. The Aruba native claimed fourth place with a time of 2:26.23. The men’s 200-breaststroke was one of the most exciting races of the day. Hornikel stayed neck-and-neck with a swimmer from both Tampa and Florida Southern throughout the whole race. In the end, he claimed second place with a B-cut time of 2:03.87. It was four tenths of a second off the leader.

The Shark Invitational ended with the 400-yard freestyle relay. The women’s team set a new program record with a time of 3:34.17, good for third place. The men also claimed third place in the event with a B-cut time of 3:06.54.

The Sharks will return after the holiday break on Jan. 2 to take on national powerhouse Grand Valley State at the NSU Aquatic Center at 3 p.m.