Virginia Men's Swimming Finishes 17th at NCAA Championship

Shamek Pietucha places third in 200 yard butterfly

March 28, 1998

AUBURN, Ala. - Junior Shamek Pietucha (Edmonton, Alberta) placed third in the 200 yard butterfly to lead the University of Virginia men's swimming team to a 17th place finish at the NCAA Championship. The Cavaliers finished with a total of 89 points for the competition, giving them their highest-ever score in an NCAA Championship meet, as well as their best-ever finish at 17th. Stanford won the NCAA title with a total of 599 points.

Pietucha placed third in the 200 fly finals with his time of 1:44.28, earning first team All-America honors in the process. Pietucha, who set a new school record with that time, was also the fastest qualifier during the preliminary round in a time of 1:44.55. In addition to Pietucha, sophomore Doak Finch (Southern Pines, N.C.) earned first team All-America honors in the 200 fly, placing seventh in a time of 1:45.32.

Sophomore Austin Ramirez (Brookfield, Wis.) earned a fourth place finish in the 1,650 yard freestyle with a time of 15:00.68. Freshman Jamie Grimes (Olney, Md.) also swam in the 1,650 free, placing 17th in a time of 15:20.41. Senior Jason Webb (Philadelphia, Pa.) also had an excellent showing on the day, claiming 11th place in the 200 yard backstroke with a time of 1:44.72

In addition to the excellent finishes by Virginia's individual swimmers, the 800 yard freestyle relay team earned a 14th place finish. The team of Pietucha, Ramirez, Finch and Webb swam a time of 6:35.45 in the event.