March 27, 2010

COLUMBUS, Ohio – South Carolina freshman Michael Flach finished in 33rd place in preliminaries of the 200-yard freestyle on Saturday at the NCAA Swimming & Diving Championships.

Flach swam a time of 1:36.90, his second-fastest of the year, to post a 33rd-place finish in the 48-man field. His fastest time came in the leadoff leg of the 800-yard freestyle relay at the SEC Championships, where he earned his spot in the NCAA meet with a 1:36.62. It took a 1:35.03 to make the consolation final and a 1:33.86 to make the championship final. As with yesterday’s 500 freestyle, Florida’s Conor Dwyer was the top qualifier with a 1:33.43.

The freshman from Annandale, Va., will have one more opportunity at these championships as he is set to compete in the 200 butterfly on Sunday. Preliminaries get underway at noon with live results and live video available through NCAA.com.