MINNEAPOLIS -- The first finals session of the 2014 Minnesota Intercollegiate Athletic Conference (MIAC) Swimming and Diving Championships filled the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center with excitement Thursday night, with two MIAC records, another meet record, a pair of individual three-peats and plenty of swims that met the NCAA cuts.

After one day, the team race featured a pair of squads laying the foundation to add to their recent championship streaks. The Gustavus women built a big lead, amassing 287 points in the first scored session as they try to claim their fifth-straight MIAC title. On the men's side, defending champ St. Olaf built a 60-point lead over second-place St. Thomas, as the Oles scored 272 Thursday evening.

| SESSION 2 RESULTS | PHOTOS: MEN - WOMEN | VIDEO |

The Tommies also sit second in the women's standings with 159.5 points, and the Oles are third with 136.5. Saint Benedict (97) and Carleton (90) round out the women's top five, with St. Catherine sitting in sixth with 75 points. Macalester's 48 points are good for seventh. Augsburg and Concordia each scored 40 to tie for eighth, and Saint Mary's (28) edged Hamline (24) for 10th to finish out the rankings.

St. Thomas has 212 points and trails the Oles by exactly 60 after one day, and Carleton is third with 172 points. Saint John's is in fourth with 129 points, and the Gusties are just seven points behind the Johnnies in fifth with 122. Saint Mary's has 57 points in sixth, and Hamline and Macalester tied for seventh place with 50 points apiece.

The Gustie women finished first in all five events Thursday, with seven All-Conference (top three) performers in the three individual events. Reigning MIAC Women's Swimmer-of-the-Year Alissa Tinklenberg won one event and helped the Gusties win a pair of relays as well. Individually, she won the 50-yard freestyle with a 2013 NCAA Selection Time of 23.18.

Tinklenberg teamed up with Jenny Strom, Dani Klunk and Katie Olson to set a new MIAC record in the 400-yard medley relay, winning in 3:47.09. The Gustavus tandem of Tinklenberg, Tarin Anding, Klunk and Olson also won the 200-yard freestyle relay with 2013 NCAA Selection Time of 1:33.83. Klunk led a trio of Gusties atop the 200-yard individual medley podium with a B-cut time of 2:06.96, and teammate Jenny Strom won the 500-yard freestyle, as her time also met the NCAA B Cut.

Other notable finished on the women's side included the St. Thomas relay teams, which finished second in both of Thursday's team events. St. Olaf's Maddie Lee finished second in the 500-free and Carleton's Milana Socha took third in the 50-free.

Colby Kubat and St. Olaf got off to a great start Thursday. (Photo by Matt Higgins, MIAC)

The Oles nearly equaled the first-place of the Gustie women, winning four of the five swimming events. Michael Gratz delivered the men's highlight of the night, winning his third-straight 200-yard individual medley title with a new MIAC record time of 1:49.03. Gratz also helped St. Olaf win the 200-yard freestyle relay (1:21.60) along with Tanner Roe, Billy Brebrick and Alek Rudstrom.

The other meet record to fall was also courtesy of St. Olaf, as Rudstrom, Colby Kubat, Brebrick and Roe won the 400-yard medley relay with a new MIAC Championship standard of 3:20.20. Roe made it a personal hat trick, adding a victory in the men's 50-yard freestyle with a B-cut time of 20.68.

The men also got 2014's first crack at the diving board, with the 1-meter finals held Thursday night. Reigning MIAC Men's Diver-of-the-Year Nick Johnson started his final MIAC Championships in strong fashion, winning his third-straight 1-meter title with a 2013 NCAA Selection Score 477.90. St. Olaf's Scott Hodgson was the runner-up, also meeting the selection standard with a score of 467.65.

The men's other individual champion was Gustavus' Zac Solis, who won the 500-yard freestyle. Solis was victorious thanks to a B-cut time of 4:35.35. Fellow Gustie Bennet Woltjer was third in diving (405.75). Carleton also had a handful of highlights, with a second-place finish in the 200-free relay, another runner-up performance from Evan Lahr in the 50-free and a pair of third-place showings from Evan Harris (500-free) and Stephen Grinich (50-free). St. Thomas' Mike Lanz was the runner-up in the 200-IM, and the Tommies placed in the top three in both relays.

The top three finishers in each event - including relays - earned All-Conference honors for their performances, and were awarded medals. Complete team standings and Thursday's All-Conference honorees are listed below.

The 2014 MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships will continue with four more sessions Friday and Saturday (Feb. 14-15) at the University of Minnesota Aquatic Center. Each morning sessions feature preliminary races and will begin at 10:30 a.m., and the evening finals sessions will start at 6:30 p.m. each day. The doors open each morning at 9 a.m., and again at 5:30 p.m. for the evening session on Friday. The doors will open at 3 p.m. for Saturday's final session.

The Gustavus women won all five events Thursday night. (Photo by Matt Higgins, MIAC)

Spectators are welcome at all sessions, and there are two different options for purchasing tickets. Single-session tickets will be sold, costing $8 for adults and $4 for students. Fans will also have the option to buy an All-Session Pass for $40 (adults) or $20 (students). Heat sheets are included in the price of admission and will be available at the ticket window. Children 5 and under will be admitted free, and MIAC passes will be honored. No other passes or discounts will be accepted.

If fans can't make it to Minneapolis, there are several ways they can track the action from afar. The MIAC has again teamed up with Webcast America to offer a live video/audio webcast of all six sessions. Webcast America will also offer archives of the sessions on its website for on-demand viewing, or purchase on DVD. There will also be "live" results available online with times and scores updated shortly following each event.

Complete information and coverage of the 2014 MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships can be found on the MIAC's event home page. Throughout the championships, the page will include the event schedules, venue information, ticket information, psych sheets, heat sheets, results, recaps, photo galleries, highlight videos, helpful links and more. Fans can connect throughout the meet via social media, using the official hashtag #MIACSD on Twitter.

Gustavus Adolphus College and Hamline University are serving as the host institutions for the 2014 MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships. Twin Cities Orthopedics will again provide athletic training and medical services. The Commons Hotel is the official hotel partner of the MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships, and Pure Blue Swim provided medals for All-MIAC performers.

2014 MIAC Swimming and Diving Championships - Session 2
| Results | Photos: Men - Women | Highlight Video | Archived Video | Event Home Page | Session 3 Heat Sheet |

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2014 MIAC SWIMMING AND DIVING CHAMPIONSHIPS

Men's Team Scores (after day one) 1. St. Olaf - 272 2. St. Thomas - 212 3. Carleton - 172 4. Saint John's - 129 5. Gustavus - 122 6. Saint Mary's - 57 T7. Hamline - 50 T7. Macalester - 50

Women's Team Scores (after day one) 1. Gustavus - 287 2. St. Thomas - 159.5 3. St. Olaf - 136.5 4. Saint Benedict - 97 5. Carleton - 90 6. St. Catherine - 75 7. Macalester - 48 T8. Augsburg - 40 T8. Concordia - 40 10. Saint Mary's - 28 11. Hamline - 24

2014 MIAC Men's All-Conference Individuals 1-meter diving 1. Nick Johnson, St. Thomas, 477.90, R3, ST13 2. Scott Hodgson, St. Olaf, 467.65, ST13 3. Bennet Woltjer, Gustavus, 405.75 200-yard freestyle relay 1. St. Olaf, 1:21.60, ST13 (Tanner Roe, Billy Brebrick, Alek Rudstrom, Michael Gratz) 2. Carleton, 1:22.91, B (Stephen Grinich, Evan Lahr, George McAneny, Benito Ramirez)    3. St. Thomas, 1:23.93 (Ben Henrickson, Luke Schneeman, Nick Cox, Mike Solfelt) 500-yard freestyle 1. Zac Solis, Gustavus, 4:35.35, B 2. Spencer Scarth, St. Olaf, 4:37.67  3. Evan Harris, Carleton, 4:40.06 200-yard individual medley 1. Michael Gratz, St. Olaf, 1:49.03, M*, R3, ST13 2. Mike Lanz, St. Thomas, 1:51.66, ST13 3. Colby Kubat, St. Olaf, 1:52.03, B 50-yard freestyle 1. Tanner Roe, St. Olaf, 20.68, B 2. Evan Lahr, Carleton, 20.82 B 3. Stephen Grinich, Carleton, 20.85 B 400-yard medley relay 1. St. Olaf, 3:20.20, M, ST13 (Alek Rudstrom, Colby Kubat, Billy Brebrick, Tanner Roe) 2. St. Thomas, 3:23.86, B (Justin Mullee, Max Hamilton, Mike Lanz, Ben Henrickson) 3. Gustavus, 3:24.47, B (Dante Colucci, Jake Stern, Ross Larson, Zac Solis)

2014 MIAC Women's All-Conference Individuals 200-yard freestyle relay 1. Gustavus, 1:33.83, ST13 (Alissa Tinklenberg, Tarin Anding, Dani Klunk, Katie Olson) 2. St. Thomas, 1:36.91 (Courtney Grunewald, Emily Punyko, Claire Larson, Erin Hogan) 3. Carleton, 1:37.33 (Milana Socha, Alexandra Guy, Alex Braidey, Maria Wetzel) 500-yard freestyle 1. Jenny Strom, Gustavus, 5:02.22, B 2. Maddie Lee, St. Olaf, 5:03.87  3. Leah Anderson, Gustavus 5:08.22 200-yard individual medley 1. Dani Klunk, Gustavus, 2:06.96, B 2. Laura Drake, Gustavus, 2:07.11, B 3. Hayley Booher, Gustavus, 2:07.21, B 50-yard freestyle 1. Alissa Tinklenberg, Gustavus, 23.18, ST13 2. Katie Olson, Gustavus, 23.51, ST13 3. Milana Socha, Carleton, 23.57, ST13 400-yard medley relay 1. Gustavus, 3:47.09, M* (Alissa Tinklenberg, Jenny Strom, Dani Klunk, Katie Olson) 2. St. Thomas, 3:54.09 (Hayley Trace, Emily Punyko, Mariann Kukielka, Erin Hogan) 3. St. Olaf, 3:55.68 (Carolyn Bernhardt, Megan Gaylor, Abbey Schnaith, Maddie Lee)

Key: M - Meet Record; M* - MIAC Record; R - Repeat Champion; A - NCAA 'A' Qualifying Standard; B - NCAA 'B' Qualifying Standard; ST13 - 2013 NCAA Selection Time.

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