SwimSwam Pegs Bison Second for NCAA Meet

SHAWNEE – Oklahoma Baptist has never not won national hardware in a men's swimming championship in which it was eligible to compete.
 
While recorded times have the Bison doing quite well, the only coach the program has ever known is pumping the brakes on high expectations at the team goes to its first NCAA championship March 14-17.
 
SwimSwam, a website dedicated to college swimming, predicts the OBU men will take second in their first-ever venture into the NCAA Division II championships. Queens (N.C.) is pegged as the overwhelming favorite.
 
That site has David Lambert scoring 35 points, JP Goyetche at 28, Felipe Zapata Ramirez at 25 and Marti Penedes at 17.
 
Head Coach Sam Freas warns about accepting those predictions, since they are based on previously recorded times.
 
"It's ridiculous," Freas said. "If we win some events and place in the top 10 as a team, I'll be ecstatic, but we have people missing practice right now. That's an indicator that we're not going to do very well."
 
That scoring also doesn't include diving.
 
Eleven Bison will be in the water during the championships.
 
David Lambert and Andre del Rio will be in the 50 and 100 free and Chad Brandon swims the 50 free.
 
JP Goyetche represents OBU in the 50 and 100 freestyle and 100 backstroke.
 
Fernando Morillas Ramos swims the 100 and 200 breaststroke and Davion Conley is in the 100 breaststroke
 
Marti Penedes holds down the OBU distance fort in the 500, 1000 and 1650 freestyle.
 
Felipe Zapata Ramirez swims the 100 butterfly and 200 back and Kristijan Stunkovic is in the 200 butterfly.
 
Otto Lehtonen represents OBU in the diving events.
 
OBU also will be swimming in the 200 free, 400 free, 200 medley and 400 medley relays. Ryan Walker will be competing in relay events for the Bison.