4 Spartans swim in USA Championships

Four MSU swimmers competed at the 2010 ConocoPhillips USA Swimming National Championships from Aug. 3-7 in Irvine, Calif., where one Spartan reached two event finals.

Senior Kevin Puskaric opened the action for MSU on Tuesday night, when he placed 13th in the 100-meter breaststroke finals with a time of 1:02.97.

Two Spartans competed Wednesday, both failing to get out of prelims. Sophomore Jacob Jarzen finished 47th in the 100-meter backstroke with a time of 57.79 seconds, and senior Colby Ward posted a time of 1:54.17 in the 200-meter freestyle, which put him in 73rd place.

On Thursday, Jarzen raced in the 100-meter men’s butterfly but was disqualified. Junior Kerry Sodonis finished in 116th place in the 100-meter breaststroke with a time of 1:16.72.

Day four saw Jarzen race again, this time in the 100-meter freestyle, and Ward compete in the 1500-meter freestyle. Jarzen clocked in with a time of 52.80 seconds, good for 112th place, and Ward finished 74th with a time of 16:27.22.

In the final day of competition, Jarzen raced for the fourth consecutive day and finished 42nd in the 200-meter backstroke with a time of 2:05.72. Puskaric also raced Saturday, advancing to the finals in the 200-meter breaststroke. The senior ended competition for MSU by recording a time of 2:17.12, giving him a 14th-place finish.