STEVENS POINT, Wis. – The men of Gustavus swimming & diving sit atop the leaderboard after day one of the UW-Stevens Point Invite on Friday, Jan. 24 at the UWSP Aquatics Center. 

The Gusties won a pair of events, the 200 IM and the 400 medley relay, and added top five finishes in four others. Through nine events, the men totaled 561 points, followed by the host Pointers (420), UW-La Crosse (395), and Hamline (71). Both UW-Eau Claire and Lawrence (Wis.) totaled 28 and 13 points, respectively, competing only in diving. 

Competition started in the morning with preliminary races, and Peyton Richardson (5th, Crystal Lake, Ill.) as he's done all season, posted the top time in the 200 IM, a 1:59.61. Richardson was the only swimmer in prelims to post a sub-two minute time. He claimed the only individual win for the Gusties in the event finals, bettering his earlier time by a second with a 1:58.03. A total of nine Gusties scored points in the event. 

The 400 medley relay team of Logan Cyr (So., Maple Grove, Minn.), Nyden Hill (Sr., Conway, Ark.), Logan Braley (Jr., Elk River, Minn.), and Richardson claimed first with a 3:33.05. The Gustie "B" relay finished fourth, while the "C" team was sixth, and two other Gustie groups finished seventh and eighth. 

Cyr was the highest Gustavus finisher in the 500 freestyle, taking second with a time of 4:55.50. Matthew Lillejord (So., Naples, Fla.) and Landon Vaupel (So., Shakopee, Minn.) also took fourth and fifth in the event. Richardson added a second place finish in the 200 butterfly with a time of 1:59.91, bettering his prelims time by two seconds. UW-Stevens Point touched the wall first with a 1:57.93, while the Gusties' Jacob Robischon (Fy., Sauk Centre, Minn.) was third with a 2:01.12.

Hill also collected a third place finish in the 200 breaststroke (2:13.82), joining eight of his teammates who scored points in the event. The 200 freestyle relay of Braden Ripken (So., Blaine, Minn.), Aiden Shermak (So., Bloomington, Minn.), Braley, and Richardson added another top five finish, taking third in 1:27.73.

Ripken was the top Gustie in the 100 freestyle (49.66, sixth), while teammates Braley and Shermak finished shortly behind him in seventh and eighth, respectively. Will Sarkinen (Jr., St. Michael, Minn.) led Gustavus in the 100 backstroke, taking seventh with a 57.96, alongside six other Gusties who placed in the top 16 of the event. 

On the boards, Ryan Lester (Sr., Hastings, Minn.) and Trevor Johnson (Jr., Eden Prairie, Minn.) both added points to the team total for the Gusties, as Lester's 1-meter dive was good for seventh (342.25), and Johnson's 12th (262.75).

The meet concludes tomorrow, Jan. 25, with preliminary races beginning at 10 a.m., followed by 12:30 p.m. 3-meter diving, and 4 p.m. finals.