After finishing in second place in three previous events, Jakub Jiracek (Nymburk, Czech Republic) finally broke through, earning the second individual national title in Seattle University swimming history by winning the 200 breaststroke on Saturday, March 15, helping the Seattle University men’s swim team to a program-best eighth place finish at the 2008 NCAA Division II Swimming and Diving Championships at the Mizzou Aquatics Center.
With his victory in a school-record time of 1:58.55, Jiracek set a new NCAA Division II record with his 11th career individual national title, the first ten won during his three years at Drury University. Jiracek joins Chris Coley (Austin, Texas), the 2006 winner in the 100 butterfly, as Seattle University Division II national champions.
By himself, Jiracek accounted for 71 of Seattle University’s 214 points in the meet, the most points scored by any individual at the national meet. The graduate student in the Albers School of Business and Economics smashed school records while finishing second in the 200 individual medley (1:49.11), the 400 individual medley (3:55.97), and the 100 breaststroke (54.86).
"To compete on the exceptionally high level that Jakub has sustainably performed at requires bringing multi-faceted gifts to the table. Aside from his work ethic, his level of talent, and his academic prowess, he is a team-based student-athlete. The multitude of ways he gives back to a program is outstanding. To set the record for most career individual national titles at this year's championships is the culmination of what he brings to the table," said head coach Craig Mallery.
Seattle University swimmers nearly won two other national titles on Thursday, March 13. First, Coley just missed his second national title in three years, finishing second in the 100 butterfly by 33/100ths of a second, breaking his own school record with a time of 48.19 seconds. Later that night, the 4x100 medley relay team of Bryson Chiu (Carmel, Ind.), Jiracek, Coley, and Gordon Smith (Kennewick, Wash.) finished second with a school-record time of 3:18.80.
Chiu proved to be one of the team’s top performers throughout the week, earning two individual All-America honors with a fourth place finish in the 200 individual medley (1:51.52) and a fifth place finish in the 200 breaststroke (2:02.61). Doug Djang (Seattle, Wash.) also earned All-America honors on the men’s side with a fifth place finish in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 55.94 seconds.
Francesca Reale (Gig Harbor, Wash.), the lone female representative for Seattle University, became the third Seattle University female swimmer to earn Division II All-America honors, finishing in eighth place in the 100 backstroke in 58.04 seconds. She qualified for the “A” final by breaking her own school record with a time of 57.15 seconds in the morning preliminaries.
Junior Bryant Bevers (Federal Way, Wash.) also competed for Seattle University at the national championships, earning three honorable mention All-America awards as a member of the 4x50 freestyle relay team that finished 11th (1:24.65), the 4x200 freestyle relay team that finished 14th (6:52.68), and the 4x100 freestyle relay team that place 11th (3:04.33).
"We've always strived for a deliberate progression of successes on the national level, and this group not only followed that path but went to a high level of fruition," Mallery said.
The NCAA Division II Swimming and Diving Championships was the final collegiate competition for Coley, Jiracek, Reale, and Smith. Bevers, Chiu, and Djang will lead the Seattle University swim program as it begins the reclassification process to become a Division I school over the next four years.