March 27, 2015
Results (Day 2 Prelims)| Schedule|Follow @MoStateSwim
IOWA CITY, Iowa -- Missouri State junior Uvis Kalnins broke his previous school record in the 400 individual medley as he and two other Bears competed in the second day of the 2015 NCAA Division I Men's Swimming and Diving Championships Friday, March 27, at Iowa's Campus Recreation and Wellness Center Natatorium.
Kalnins, seeded 33rd in the 400 IM heading into preliminaries, finished fourth in the second heat of the event in a time of 3:45.00. His finish topped the school record he set at the 2015 Mid-American Conference Championships earlier this month by one second, and was more than two seconds faster than his time at last season's NCAA meet.
The Valmiera, Latvia, native's 21st-place finish Friday was three spots higher than in 2014. Kalnins had the 13th fastest time heading into the final heat and he was just 0.84 seconds behind Missouri's Daniel Graviss for 16th place in prelims.
Missouri State senior Paul Le won the third heat of the 100 backstroke with a time of 47.00, placing 29th overall. The Moore, Okla., native had the 35th fastest time prior to the championships. Le also improved from his appearance at last season's meet, finishing in a time of 47.23 and getting 35th among all Division I swimmers in 2014.
"I was very pleased with how both guys in the swimming events did," Missouri State head coach Dave Collins said. "We came into the meet feeling like we were more prepared for Uvis [Kalnins] in the 200 IM, but after warmups this morning, he felt good and he said he felt a lot better with his pace for the 400 IM. That was obviously really positive before the racing started. He swam a great race and he went a time that every other year would have put him in the top 16, it just happened to be the event that was fast this year."
Bears senior Garrett Nevels completed his appearance at the NCAA Championships with 3-meter diving. The Lee's Summit, Mo., native rose six spots from his finish in 1-meter diving for a 41st-place finish on the 3-meter board with 293.40 points Friday.
"I'm very proud of Garrett [Nevels] and (diving coach) Jim [Huelskammp]," Collins said. "This was just such a neat opportunity and a great way to finish out a wonderful career for him. To watch him come in and develop, do what he's been able to do each year, and see it come together and represent us at the highest level has been pretty special. I know he didn't have his best dives at this meet, but that doesn't matter since he was able to make it here. I know he's proud of that and it's a great way to go out as a senior."
The final day of the NCAA Division I Men's Swimming and Diving Championships begin at 11 a.m. Saturday, March 28, at the CRWC Natatorium. Kalnins and Le will swim in their final events, the 100 freestyle and 200 backstroke, respectively. Live video and results for prelims are available on the Championship Central page provided by Iowa, while Friday's finals will be aired online at ESPN3.com.
"For Uvis [Kalnins], we've got to completely switch gears," Collins said. "I know last year he was the only guy in the entire meet to do the 400 IM-100 free combo. It's a completely different mentality and completely different race. It will be fun for him to get in and see what he can do in that event. For Paul [Le], this is his go-to event. This is the event that he's consistently been the strongest in. It's also one of the fastest events on paper in the meet. He's going to have to have a lifetime best time tomorrow morning in an effort to try to extend his swimming career into the evening session. It'll be fun for both of them and we're just going to have to be perfect."
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