It was a very successful weekend at the Toyota U.S. Open Championships in Greensboro, N.C. for the four Youngstown State men's swimmers that competed at the Greensboro Aquatic Center.
Jacob Gramer was the lone performer for the Penguins on Thursday, as he competed in the 50 free. Gramer rewrote the Penguin record book in both the preliminary round and the final, as he broke the program freshman 50-free record twice. Gramer swam a time of 20.20 in the prelims to qualify for the B Final, which he then lowered the bar and swam a time of 20.12, good enough for a 15th-place finish overall out of 62 swimmers.
Friday was a busy day for the Penguins. Gramer and Lorenz Beck both had very impressive performances in the 100 butterfly, with Beck setting a new program freshman record in the preliminary round with a time of 47.53. Both men advanced to the A Final, and finished fourth and fifth, respectively, as Beck swam a time of 47.53, and Gramer finished shortly behind Beck with a time of 47.61. James Slessor also competed on Friday and he put forth two memorable performances in the 100 breaststroke. Slessor set a new program record in the preliminary round with a time of 54.20, which was good enough to qualify for the A Final. Slessor then outdid his performance in the prelims as he shattered the new program record in the final with a time of 53.79. His time was good enough for a 10th-place finish.
Slessor and Poyraz San Askin were the two Penguins that performed on Saturday. San Askin competed in the 1650 free, where he finished with a time of 15:43.31. Slessor competed in the 200 breaststroke, where he set a new program record in the event with a time of 1:59.20, as he finished in 10th place out of 24 swimmers that qualified for the finals.
Up Next
Select distance swimmers will compete at the CSCAA Open Water National Championships at Florida International University in Biscayne Bay on Sunday, Dec. 15.
For news and updates throughout the 2024-25 season, follow @YSUSwimDive on X.
