Men's swimming and diving team captures 2007 MIAA Championship

The Olivet College men's swimming and diving team edged Hope College by nine points to capture the 2007 Michigan Intercollegiate Athletic Association (MIAA) Championships. The Comets scored 546.5 points, while Hope had 537.5 points. In addition, Shawn Bergman (Chelsea) was named the MIAA Most Valuable Diver.

Brian Jaffee (Bowling Green, Ohio) led a 2-5-7 finish for Olivet in the 1,650-yard freestyle. His time was 16:38.56. Jaffee's younger brother, Sam, finished fourth in 16:55.41, followed by Jason Wheatley (Portage/Central) in seventh at 17:00.86.

In the 200-yard backstroke, Koji Takahashi (Etobicoke, Ontario) placed fifth in a school-record time of 1:58.39. In the consolation finals of the 100 back, the Comets were ninth, 10th and 12th. Brian Johnson (Lansing/Eastern) touched the wall in 1:59.31, followed by Nick Stone (Westland/John Glenn) in 2:00.37 and Wheatley in 2:03.99.

Mitch Powers (Kalamazoo/ Central) tied for third-place and lowered his school record to 46.88 seconds in the 100-yard freestyle. Brad Voss (Lansing/Holt) was just .03 seconds behind Powers. In the consolation finals of the 100 free, Juan Aguirre (Queretaro, Mexico) was last and 12th-place overall at 47.93 seconds.

Dustin Meisner (Temperance/Erie Mason) became a three-time MIAA champion in the 200-yard breaststroke. His time of 2:05.30 was a NCAA Championships conditional qualifying cut. Ryan Key (Phoenix, Ariz./Brophy Prep) was third in the 200 breast (2:08.97). Also placing in the 200 breast were Jon Hon (Alma) in 10th (2:21.66) and Nathaniel Burchfield (Lansing/Everett) in 12th (2:24.94).

Yury Bylina (Minsk, Belarus) led a 3-4-5 finish for Olivet in the 200-yard butterfly. Bylina touched the wall in 1:57.00. Takahashi finished in 1:57.47, and Ananta Fetters (Fennville/Holland) in 1:58.82. Johnson also scored ninth-place points in the 200 fly with a time of 2:01.80.

In the final event, 400-yard freestyle relay, of the championships, the Comets' team of Aguirre, Powers, Voss and Nathan Busscher (Hamilton/Holland Christian) was second. Their time of 3:09.01 broke the school record.