Inigo Marina National Champion

1ST NATIONAL CHAMPION IN STU HISTORY, 11 ALL-AMERICANS IN YEAR 1 OF SWIMMING

4/5/2022 10:28:00 AM

By: Caesar Asadi
(MIAMI GARDENS, Fla.) The St. Thomas University (STU) Men's and Women's Swimming programs dove into the pool at the NAIA National Championship for the first time in school history from March 2 - 5, 2022 at the Columbus Aquatic Center in Georgia. 
The Bobcats concluded the championship with 11 All-Americans and St. Thomas University's first National Champion in school history. Inigo Marina took gold in the Men's 200-yard Breastroke in dramatic fashion, closing out the last 50 yards against the defending champion from Keiser. 
The men's team finished 4th overall with just seven Bobcats, scoring 317 points, missing the team podium by just 18 points to Cumberland University (335 points).
NAIA All-Americans for Swimming:
Men
Inigo Marina 
Liam Henry
William Birkett
Oier Fernandez
Matteo Caruso
Christian Perez
Alex Marrero
Women
Marta Lekovic
Mikayla DePover
Andrea Guerrero
Alisha Uzakova Below are the events they earned All-American honors in:
Day 1
Men's 4 x 200 Yard Freestyle Relay: 4th Place 
Inigo Marina
Liam Henry
William Birkett
Oier Fernandez
Day 2
Men's 200 Yard Freestyle Relay: National Runner-Up (2nd Place)
William Birkett
Christian Perez
Matteo Caruso
Alex Marrero - first Bobcat to break 20 seconds in the 50-yard freestyle (19.99)
Marrero took the relay from 5th to a 2nd place finish with a fantastic anchor to close the deal for the Bobcats.
Men's 500 Yard Freestyle:
Oier Fernandez - 8th Place
200-Yard Individual Medley:
Inigo Marina - 5th Place
Women's 400 Yard Medley Relay: 8th Place
Marta Lekovic
Mikayla DePover
Andrea Guerrero
Alisha Uzakova
Men's 400 Yard Medley Relay: National Runner-Up (2nd Place)
Alex Marrero
Inigo Marina
Liam Henry
William Birkett
Day 3
Women's 200 Yard Medley Relay: 5th Place
Marta Lekovic
Mikayla DePover
Andrea Guerrero
Alisha Uzakova
Men's 200 Yard Medley Relay: National Runner-Up
Alex Marrero
Inigo Marina
Liam Henry
William Birkett
Men's 100 Yard Butterfly: National Runner-Up
Liam Henry - 2nd Place
Women's 100 Yard Breastroke:
Mikayla DePover - 5th Place
Men's 100 Yard Breastroke: National Runner-Up
Inigo Marina - 2nd Place
Men's 100 Yard Backstroke: National Runner-Up
Alex Marrero - 2nd Place
Men's 200 Yard Freestyle:
William Birkett - 8th Place
Day 4
Men's 200 Yard Backstroke
Alex Marrero - 7th Place
Oier Fernandez - 8th Place
Men's 200 Yard Breastroke - National Champion
Inigo Marina - 1st Place
Men's 400-Yard Freestyle Relay: National Runner-Up
Inigo Marina
Matteo Caruso
William Birkett
Alex Marrero
The entire National team intends to return next year, with only one senior graduating (Women's Captain Alex Perez). The program went from seven men and two women in January 2021 to a National contending program in less than 12 months.
Coach Asadi on the conclusion of Year 1 and the team's performance at the National Championship:
"I am proud. Not because of the All-American honors, our National Champion, or the other accolades, but of the culture we are building here at St. Thomas. We have come a very long way since I took over this program in January 2021. I told the team in our first meeting last August that this was going to be a learning experience for all of us. To our National Team, you have represented our program with the pride and professionalism that we will be known for across the NAIA. Thank you for a great first year, and I look forward to what we will do in Year 2."
Full Results of the NAIA National Championship on SwimCloud:
https://www.swimcloud.com/results/197318/
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