July 12, 2013

KAZAN, Russia — South Carolina senior Michael Flach delivered a pair of outstanding swims for Team USA on Friday to advance to the 200-meter butterfly final at the 2013 World University Games.

Flach posted the second fastest swim of the preliminaries with a time of 1:58.94 to make the semifinal heats. He then improved his time in the semifinal, finishing second in his heat with a swim of 1:58.77. His time was the sixth fastest out of the two semifinals, earning him a chance to swim for a gold medal in Saturday’s final.

A native of Annandale, Va., Flach achieved his goal of making the final with South Carolina head swimming and diving coach McGee Moody present on the pool deck serving as an assistant coach for Team USA.

Hungary’s Bence Biczo had the fastest time in the semifinals, touching the wall in 1:57.83.

The 200 butterfly final is schedule to begin at 12 p.m. ET on Saturday. ESPN3 will have live coverage beginning at 11 a.m.