The University of Texas at Austin Athletics
University of Texas
NCAA Championships
No. 1 Men's Swimming and Diving sets NCAA, U.S. Open records in 800-yard freestyle relay
03.23.2016 | Men's Swimming and Diving
Jack Conger, Townley Haas, Clark Smith and Joseph Schooling take down the NCAA, NCAA Championship meet, U.S. Open, Big 12, school and pool records on night one of the NCAA Championships
Results | Video | Photo Gallery
ATLANTA – No. 1 Texas won its 13th NCAA title in the 800-yard freestyle relay in explosive fashion, as Jack Conger, Townley Haas, Clark Smith and Joseph Schooling set NCAA, U.S. Open and four additional records in the event Wednesday on night one of the 2016 NCAA Championships.
The Texas quartet won the event in 6 minutes, 8.03 seconds and eclipsed the NCAA and U.S. Open (fastest on U.S. soil) mark of 6:09.85 set by Michigan at the 2014 Big Ten Championships.
The relay eclipsed Texas' own NCAA Championship, Big 12 and school record of 6:10.16 set by Dave Walters, Ricky Berens, Scott Jostes and Michael Klueh at the 2009 NCAA Championships. The mark took down the McAuley Aquatic Center pool record of 6:12.43 set by Club Wolverine in 2007.
Conger led off the relay in 1:31.89, just a fraction of a second off of Walters' 200 freestyle school mark of 1:31.72.
"I talked to Eddie and he told me to get out as fast as I could in the first 100," Conger said, "and then to start building that last 100, work my walls and take more kicks after each 25 (yards)."
Conger gave way to Haas, who recorded the fastest 200 freestyle split of all-time with a stunning 1:30.52.
"Wow," Haas said afterward. "It's just incredible. It's great to help keep up this tradition we have here in the 800 free relay. Most of my race strategies involve going out and trying to hang on, and I hung on well."
Smith, the 2015 NCAA champion in the 500-yard freestyle, split 1:33.28 on the relay's third leg before giving way to Schooling. The Olympian from Singapore anchored the relay in 1:32.34 to seal the record-setting mark of 6:08.03.
The win awarded Texas 40 points and an early lead in the team standings with three days of competition remaining. N.C. State holds second place with 34 points after taking second in the 800 free relay while Florida holds third with 32 points.
The day two preliminary round gets underway Thursday at 10 a.m. ET/9 a.m. CT.
NCAA Championships – Day 1 Results
800 Freestyle Relay
- Texas (Conger 1:31.89, Haas 1:30.52, Smith 1:33.28, Schooling 1:32.34), 6:08.03
Players Mentioned
