INDIANA, Pa. — The Clarion men's swimming and diving team delivered a strong performance Friday, earning back-to-back second-place team finishes at the Crimson Hawks Fall Invitational and the IUP Sprint Frenzy held at the IUP Fieldhouse-Zink Pool.
The Golden Eagles opened the morning session in the Crimson Hawks Fall Invitational by capturing third place in the 400 Medley Relay. The quartet of Henry Miller, Rich Scholer, Gavin Guckavan, and Dylan Chaky combined for a time of 3:33.41, while Clarion's 'B' Relay of Darren Bittner, Kasey Mahoney, Joey Margita, and Evan Ream touched right behind in fifth at 3:34.59.
Clarion quickly took control in the individual events, highlighted by Ream claiming victory in the 400 IM with a first-place mark of 4:16.68. Teammate Connor Hoy added key team points by finishing fourth in 4:22.98, and Kevin Santos took eighth in 4:32.26. Miller paced the Golden Eagles in the 100 Fly, finishing fifth in 52.13 seconds, followed by Guckavan in seventh at 53.52 and Scholer in ninth at 53.95.
Ream maintained his distance supremacy in the 500 Free, touching the wall first with a winning time of 4:46.97. Hoy followed with a strong fifth-place showing in 4:58.49. In the 100 Back, Miller secured a bronze finish in 53.26 seconds, with Bittner clocking 54.57 to place fourth.
Clarion swept the top two spots in the 100 Breast as Mahoney raced to first place in 59.44 seconds, followed immediately by Guckavan in second at 59.79. The morning wrapped up with the 400 Free Relay, where Ream, Bittner, Chaky, and Guckavan claimed fourth in 3:17.65, lifting Clarion to a runner-up team standing with 388 points.
Transitioning directly into the afternoon sprint format at the IUP Sprint Frenzy, Clarion's 200 Medley Relay unit of Miller, Scholer, Guckavan, and Chaky posted a 1:37.60 for fourth place, just ahead of Bittner, Mahoney, Margita, and Ream in fifth (1:38.03).
Hoy led Clarion in the 200 IM by finishing second in 2:01.09, with Mahoney taking seventh in 2:05.35. Chaky clocked 50.27 seconds for ninth in the 100 Free, closely followed by Ream in 11th (50.78). Mahoney kept his breaststroke momentum rolling by winning the 50 Breast outright in 27.15 seconds, with Guckavan placing fifth in 28.11 and Scholer taking eighth in 28.46.
In the 50 Free, Miller sprinted to an eighth-place finish in 22.45 seconds, while Chaky took 13th in 23.01 and Hoy tied for 14th in 23.04. Guckavan tied for third place in the 50 Fly in 23.63, while Margita hit the wall seventh in 23.95. Miller then struck gold in the 50 Back, taking the event victory in 23.84 seconds, while Bittner finished seventh in 26.64.
Hoy added another top-five performance in the 200 Free, clocking 1:48.87 for fifth, followed by Ream in 10th (1:52.32) and Chaky in 11th (1:53.06). In the 100 IM, Mahoney, Guckavan, and Scholer finished third through fifth in 55.64, 55.81, and 56.42 seconds, respectively.
Clarion closed the meet with a fourth-place swim in the 200 Free Relay as Bittner, Mahoney, Hoy, and Ream posted a 1:29.13, locking in second place overall with 472.5 points.
