GREENSBORO, N.C.—The UIndy swimming & diving program stepped out of NCAA competition this weekend to race some of the world's best at the 2021 Toyota U.S. Open, held Wednesday through Saturday at the Greensboro Aquatic Center in Greensboro, N.C. Six Greyhound student-athletes competed in 12 different events, highlighted by A-final appearances by Liki Prema and Marizel van Jaarsveld.
 
"This week at the U.S. Open has been a good step for our program competing against the best swimmers in the world," said Associate Head Coach Brent Noble. "In most events, our swimmers swam against Tokyo medalists.
 
"As we continue to grow and develop as a program, these are the kind of experiences and exposure we need. In addition to goals within the NCAA, many of our swimmers compete internationally and have aspirations to do this at a higher level, so they gained valuable experience this week. Our swimmers qualified for finals in every event they raced, so they clearly thrive at this level."
 
Recently having broken the school record in the 200 breaststroke, Prema's speed in the 100 breast was on full display Friday. The Bengaluru, India native delivered the second-fastest time in the event's morning prelims, winning heat 2 with a time of 1:02.34 on the 50-meter course. He followed that up with a time of 1:02.62 in the evening final, good for fifth place overall.
 
Also notching a top-eight finish was van Jaarsveld. The reigning national champion in the 200 IM, she secured a spot in the 400 IM final with a prelim time of 1:11.74 and went on to place eighth in the evening final (1:12.56).
 
Van Jaarsveld also raced in the 200 IM, placing fifth in the B final on a time of 2:18.80. Cedric Buessing qualified for the B final in the men's 200 IM (2:07.46), taking seventh place.
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Andras Tiszai placed sixth in the 100 back B final (58.14), while Bartek Swiderski won the C final in 57.94 seconds. Johanna Buys took third in the C final of the 50 free (26.28), touching a mere hundredth of a second behind second place.
 
UP NEXT
The Greyhounds will head back to Greensboro, site of the 2022 NCAA DII Championships, for a training trip over the holiday break.  They will return to competition with the Swim4Nick Memorial Meet on Jan. 7.