2022 WIAC Men's Swimming & Diving Championship Preview University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point will look for a 22nd straight first-place finish at the Wisconsin Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (WIAC) Men’s Swimming & Diving Championship (presented by Culver’s) that will be held at Walter Schroeder Aquatic Center in Brown Deer, Wis., Feb. 16-19. UW-Stevens Point is serving as the host institution for the 59th men’s championship that will be held in conjunction with the 50th edition of the women’s meet. Competition begins on Feb. 16 at 1:45 p.m., with the preliminaries of men’s three-meter diving, while the finals will start at 6:30 p.m., and include a pair of relay events. For competition held Feb. 17 and Feb. 18, preliminaries will begin at 10:00 a.m., with the finals commencing at 6:30 p.m. The final day will feature 10:00 a.m. preliminaries and a 6:00 p.m. start for the finals. Medals will be awarded to the top-eight finishers in each of the individual events and the individuals comprising the top-three relay teams. The 2021 championship was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In 2020, the Pointers secured the 24th title in program history with 964 points. UW-Eau Claire finished second with 807 points, UW-Whitewater third with 571, UW-La Crosse fourth with 407 and UW-Oshkosh fifth with 325. UW-Stevens Point’s 24 first-place finishes rank second behind UW-Eau Claire’s 25 titles, while UW-La Crosse has collected four team championships. Former programs to win titles include: UW-Platteville (4) and UW-Milwaukee (1). This year’s championship features eight student-athletes that have combined to win 11 individual and 15 relay first-place medals at previous league meets. UW-Eau Claire’s Hans Hover is the most decorated returnee with four individual titles and four relay first-place finishes to his credit, while competing for UW-La Crosse. At the 2019 championship, he was victorious in the 100-yard backstroke, 200-yard backstroke and 100-yard butterfly, while helping the 200-yard freestyle relay, 400-yard freestyle relay, 800-yard freestyle relay and 200-yard medley relay teams to titles. Hover added a 200-yard backstroke championship in 2018. UW-Eau Claire’s Michael Bylander won the 200-yard breaststroke in 2020 with a conference meet record time of 2:00.87. He also contributed to the first-place 200-yard freestyle relay and 400-yard medley relay teams. Bylander was joined on both relays by Sam Ryf. At the 2019 championship, Bylander helped the 400-yard medley relay team to victory. UW-Stevens Point’s Sam Young owns three individual championship medals and two relay titles. He is the two-time defending champion in the 400-yard individual medley and added the 200-yard breaststroke in 2019. In relay events at the 2020 championship, Young helped the 400-yard freestyle relay and 800-yard freestyle relay teams to first-place finishes. He was joined on the teams by Jacob Larsen and Will Lennertz, respectively. Larsen added a 200-yard medley relay crown, as well as a 100-yard butterfly title, in 2020. The Pointers’ Alec Jeffers is the defending champion in the 100-yard backstroke and 200-yard backstroke, while William Buhler contributed to the first-place 200-yard medley relay squad at the 2020 championship. Nicholas Litterer and Will Quackenbush have been UW-La Crosse’s top swimmers during the 2021-22 campaign, while Tony McNiff and Evan Zimdars have produced the best diving marks. UW-Oshkosh has received strong swims from Alex Jernberg throughout the season, while Hunter Hayberger has produced the best times for UW-Whitewater. # # # # #