<ugh it was only his first trip to the NCAA Men’s Swimming and Diving Championships, junior Erik Klontz managed to secure an All-American distinction, placing eighth overall in the 50-yard freestyle and tenth overall in the 100-yard freestyle.
On Saturday, after posting a time of 44.96 in the preliminaries, Klontz defeated his own Carleton College record in the 100-yard freestyle, posting a time of 44.89 seconds. This distinction earned him an honorable Mention All-American distinction.
On Wednesday, he also swam to victory, recording a time of 20.50 seconds in the finals of the 50-yard freestyle, earning eighth overall. This earned Klontz an All-America distinction.
Klontz also swam in the 100-yard butterfly on Thursday, although he did not advance to the evening round.
Despite being Carleton’s only representative at the meet, Klontz managed to tally 18 points, just three points short of St. Olaf’s 21. By contrast, St. Olaf had three swimmers at the competition.
The victories capped a dream season for Klontz, who tallied victories in the MIAC Championships and MIAC Athlete-of-the-Week honors.
Overall, Klontz is the first Carleton men’s swimmer to earn All-American distinction in the 50-yard freestyle, and the ninth overall to win All-American distinction.
–Courtesy of Sports Information