MINNEAPOLIS – The second-ranked California men's swimming & diving team capped off a stellar week at the Minnesota Invite winning four of the six events. Cal got wins from Dare Rose, Björn Seeliger, and Reece Whitley. 

Seeliger capped off a stellar weekend winning the 100 freestyle. The senior finished with an NCAA B qualifying standard time of 41.68 which is now the third fastest time in the country. Seeliger went out fast, finishing his first 50 yards in 19.76.

The 100 free displayed the Bears' incredible depth. Joining Seeliger in the top 10 were Jack Alexy, Robin Hanson, and Matthew Jensen, whom all recorded NCAA B qualifying standard times. Alexy (42.67) took fifth, Hanson (42.71) finished in sixth, while Jensen (42.92) finished in seventh.

In the 200 breaststroke, Whitley finished first with a time of 1:52.16 ahead of Minnesota's Max McHugh. Whitley jumped out to a big lead to open the race and held on for the win. His time is an NCAA B qualifying standard time and is now the fifth fastest time in the nation.

Rose dominated the field in the 200 butterfly. His time of 1:41.01 now ranks third in the nation and is an NCAA B qualifying time. Gabriel Jett finished seventh with a time of 1:44.77, also an NCAA B qualifying standard time.

The Bear's final victory of the weekend came in the 400 free relay. As they did all weekend in the relays, the Bears dominated. Cal's "A" lineup of Alexy, Hanson, Jensen, and Lasco took first with a time of 2:48.63, an NCAA A qualifying mark, it is also the fourth fastest time this season. Lasco's anchor time of 41.74 was the second-fastest split in the event.

Cal's "B" quartet of Seeliger, Liam Bell, Dylan Hawk, and Rose finished second with a time of 2:49.00. The Bears' "C" lineup finished in seventh, the lineup of Patrick Callan, Jett, Evan Petty, and Colby Hatton finished with a time of 2:53.94.

Saturday's evening session opened with the timed finals of the 1650 freestyle. Jack Meehan finished sixth with a time of 15:14.43, an NCAA B qualifying standard.

In the 200 backstroke, Colby Mefford and Ziyad Saleem finished third and fourth respectively. Mefford finished with a time of 1:41.69 while Saleem clocked in with a time of 1:42.33. Lasco missed the A final by two-tenths of a second. So, in the B final, he went out and finished with the fastest time of the event at 1:39.09, an NCAA A qualifying time, and the second-fastest time in the country.

Joshua Thai wrapped up his breakout weekend taking second in the platform finals. Thai finished with a season-best score of 324.95. Five of his six dives were the first or second-best dives in the round.

UP NEXT
The Bears will return to action on Friday, January 20^th when they travel to Tucson to take on Arizona at the Hillenbrand Aquatic Center.

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