Indiana Carries Team Lead into Final Day at Big Tens Burns, Fantoni Win Gold on Record-Setting Night

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The No. 8-ranked men’s swimming team scored big points on the fourth night of the 2021 Big Ten Championships on the strength of two historic performances at the McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion on Friday night. The Hoosiers moved into first place in the team standings heading into the final day of action.

100 BACKSTROKE

Senior Gabriel Fantoni won his fourth-straight Big Ten gold medal in the 100 Backstroke with a time of 45.34. In total, the Belo Horizonte, Brazil, native has won six Big Ten gold medals in backstroke events.

 

Senior Jacob Steele narrowly missed out on the silver, but hung on to claim bronze in the 100 Backstroke with a time of 45.81. Freshman Gavin Wight finished 14th out of the Consolation Final with a time of 47.34.

 

100 BREASTSTROKE

Junior Zane Backes swam a collegiate career-best of 51.04 to claim the bronze medal in the 100 Breaststroke, a race that saw the top two finishers go under 51.0 seconds for the first time in the history of the event at the Big Ten Championships.

 

In the Consolation Final, senior Brock Brown finished 15th with a time of 53.39. Senior Gary Kostbade took 18th out of the C Final with a time of 53.53 and freshman Maxwell Reich rounded out the heat with a time of 53.75, good for 20th place.

 

200 BUTTERFLY

Sophomore Brendan Burns was utterly dominant in his second-straight victory in the 200 Butterfly. He touched first with a career-best, NCAA A Cut time of 1:39.22, a Big Ten Championships Meet and Indiana University school record.

 

Also swimming in the Championship Final, senior Corey Gambardella nabbed the silver medal with a career-best time of 1:42.43. Junior Van Mathias secured fourth with a time of 1:43.25.

 

200 FREESTYLE RELAY

The Hoosier team consisting of freshman Tomer Frankel, junior Jack Franzman, junior Brandon Hamblin, and Mathias outlasted the field in the timed final with an NCAA A Cut time of 1:16.24 to win the event for the third-straight season.

TEAM SCORES

  1. INDIANA – 1,036.5 pts.
  2. Michigan – 1,010 pts.
  3. Ohio State – 1,000 pts.
  4. Purdue – 615.5 pts.
  5. Wisconsin – 571 pts.
  6. Northwestern – 554 pts.
  7. Penn State – 496.5 pts.
  8. Iowa – 444.5 pts.
  9. Minnesota – 396 pts.
  10. Michigan State – 149 pts.

    NOTABLES

  • Fantoni has won the 100 Backstroke each of the last four seasons at the Big Ten Championships meet, the first to accomplish the feat since Derya Buyukunca (Michigan) from 1995-98. The last Hoosier to win four-straight in the 100 Back was Mike Stamm (1971-74).
  • He earned the 28th Big Ten gold medal in program history in the 100 Backstroke. The four-straight Hoosiers wins is the longest stretch since winning 13-straight from 1968-1980.
  • Burns joins elite Indiana swimming history as a back-to-back 200 Butterfly Big Ten champ, joining Vini Lanza (2017-19), Mark Spitz (1970-72), Frederick Schmidt (1964-65), and Michael Troy (1960-62).
  • Burns threw down a school and Big Ten Conference Championships record time of 1:39.22, a time that currently ranks second in the nation.
  • Gambardella registered a career-best time of 1:42.53, good for the fourth-fastest performer in program history and the 15th-fastest time swam this season in the NCAA.
  • Indiana has won the last five 200 Butterfly conference crowns, and has won the title 20 times. The five-straight champions marks the longest IU stretch since winning seven-straight from 1970-76.
  • Backes hit a career-best time of 51.04 in the 100 Breaststroke and ranks as the second-fastest performer in program history in the event and currently ranks fifth in the country.
  • For the third-straight season (fifth time overall) the Indiana Hoosiers won the 200 Freestyle Relay. The NCAA A Cut time of 1:16.24 ranks as the third-fastest time in program history and the sixth-fastest time nationally.
  • Frankel led off the relay with a 50 Freestyle split time of 19.42. The time is a career-best mark, an NCAA B Cut standard, and ties him for sixth on the all-timer performer list at Indiana.

FINALS RESULTS

100 BACKSTROKE

  1. Gabriel Fantoni – 45.34 (NCAA B Cut)
  2. Jacob Steele – 45.81 (NCAA B Cut)
  3. Gavin Wight – 47.34 (NCAA B Cut, Career Best)

 

100 BREASTSTROKE

  1. Zane Backes – 51.04 (NCAA A Cut, Career Best)
  2. Brock Brown – 53.39 (NCAA B Cut)
  3. Gary Kostbade – 53.53 (NCAA B Cut)
  4. Maxwell Reich – 53.75 (NCAA B Cut, Career Best)

 

200 BUTTERFLY

  1. Brendan Burns – 1:39.22 (NCAA A Cut, School Record, Big Ten Championships Record, Career Best)
  2. Corey Gambardella – 1:42.53 (NCAA B Cut, Career Best)
  3. Van Mathias – 1:43.25 (NCAA B Cut)

 

200 FREESTYLE RELAY

  1. Tomer Frankel, Jack Franzman, Brandon Hamblin, Van Mathias – 1:16.24 (NCAA A Cut)

 

UP NEXT

The 2021 Big Ten Championships will continue on Saturday morning with the final preliminary heats of the weekend. The action will begin with prelims in the 100 Freestyle, 200 Backstroke and 200 Breaststroke at 11 a.m. ET on BTN+.

 

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