Completed Event: Men's Swimming and Diving at Hawaii on October 25, 2025 , Loss , 128, to, 134
M Swimming
at Hawaii
L 128-134
Grand Canyon University Athletics
Men claim 1st WAC championship
3/2/2019 10:31:00 PM | Men's Swimming and Diving
GCU pulls away to claim 2019 WAC men's swimming and diving title
HOUSTON -- The Grand Canyon men's swimming and diving team made history Saturday evening, winning its first-ever WAC championship.
The Lopes first took the top spot in the WAC Championships after winning all three Saturday events and never taking their feet off the gas in the four-day meet, earning the title of WAC champions with 688.50 points.
"The guys did a great job closing out the meet to win their first WAC Championship," Lopes head coach Steve Schaffer said, "Although Wyoming took some of the pressure off when they had an early relay exchange and their 400 medley relay was disqualified, we still had to swim well enough in the morning to be able to seal the deal in finals. It took a total team effort and everyone did their job."
Senior Mark Nikolaev, who was named the WAC Swimmer of the Year for the third consecutive year, earned his third individual WAC title by winning the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 1 minute, 41.29 seconds.
"Mark (Nikolaev) is one of those rare individuals who we were lucky enough to recruit to GCU," Schaffer said. "Winning his third-straight WAC Swimmer of the Year award was a fitting tribute to cap his college career and I am grateful that the other coaches rewarded him with that again this year."
Sophomore Cameron Carney and freshman Kainan Coerin finished sixth (1:47.06) and seventh (1:48.17) in the 200 backstroke
In his final career WAC Championship event, senior Daniil Antipov also captured his third individual WAC title by finishing first in the 200 butterfly. His time of 1:42.55 set a WAC Championships record.
Another freshman, Alonso Carazo Barbero, finished fourth in the 1,650 freestyle, covering the mile-long swim in 15:32.30.
In the 200 breaststroke, sophomore Asahi Nagahata took sixth with a time of 1:59.69.
Shoukri, freshman Samuel McKenzie, Carney and Janin closed out WAC Championships for GCU with a third-place finish in the 400 freestyle relay with a time of 2:57.71.
"Our seniors really stepped up for this," Schaffer said. "Winning a conference championship before they graduated was really important to them and it showed. Mark (Nikolaev) and Daniill (Antipov) each won three individual events and were part of four winning relays, while Bogdan (Plavin) scored more points than he ever had before and helped get our 200 freestyle relay A cut. They were just awesome and will be sorely missed next year."
In the final diving event, the platform, GCU juniors Pietro Hufnagel Toscani and Nick Benson made the finals as Hufnagel Toscani finished second with a score of 291.35 and Benson took eighth with 229.90. Hufnagel Toscani and Benson earned spots in the finals of all three diving events.
"We absolutely could not have done this without the great job our head diving coach Hunter Shafer has done," Schaffer said. "In his first year with us, he did a fantastic job in preparing Pietro (Hunagel Toscani) and Nick (Benson) this season so that they could both be top 8 finishers all three events this year. I am excited to see how both compete at the NCAA Zone Qualifiers next week"
For more on GCU swimming and diving, follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @GCU_Swimming.
The Lopes first took the top spot in the WAC Championships after winning all three Saturday events and never taking their feet off the gas in the four-day meet, earning the title of WAC champions with 688.50 points.
MISSION ACCOMPLISHED 🏆
— GCU Swim & Dive (@GCU_Swimming) March 3, 2019
MEN'S SWIMMING AND DIVING ARE YOUR 2019 WAC CHAMPIONS!!! #LopesUp | #WACsd pic.twitter.com/IvgfbS9z8S
"The guys did a great job closing out the meet to win their first WAC Championship," Lopes head coach Steve Schaffer said, "Although Wyoming took some of the pressure off when they had an early relay exchange and their 400 medley relay was disqualified, we still had to swim well enough in the morning to be able to seal the deal in finals. It took a total team effort and everyone did their job."
Senior Mark Nikolaev, who was named the WAC Swimmer of the Year for the third consecutive year, earned his third individual WAC title by winning the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 1 minute, 41.29 seconds.
HE'S SO FAST! 🥇
— GCU Swim & Dive (@GCU_Swimming) March 3, 2019
Mark Nikolaev wins his third individual event and is named WAC CHAMPION in the 200 Backstroke with a time of 1:41.29!#LopesUp | #WACsd pic.twitter.com/XONODa9Ny5
"Mark (Nikolaev) is one of those rare individuals who we were lucky enough to recruit to GCU," Schaffer said. "Winning his third-straight WAC Swimmer of the Year award was a fitting tribute to cap his college career and I am grateful that the other coaches rewarded him with that again this year."
Sophomore Cameron Carney and freshman Kainan Coerin finished sixth (1:47.06) and seventh (1:48.17) in the 200 backstroke
In his final career WAC Championship event, senior Daniil Antipov also captured his third individual WAC title by finishing first in the 200 butterfly. His time of 1:42.55 set a WAC Championships record.
Freshmen Mazen Shoukri and Florent Janin wrapped up their individual events in the 100 freestyle with Shoukri in fourth (44.06) and Janin in sixth (44.14).HIS THIRD INDIVIDUAL 🥇
— GCU Swim & Dive (@GCU_Swimming) March 3, 2019
Daniil Antipov is the WAC CHAMPION in the 200 Butterfly with a time of 1:42.55!#LopesUp | #WACsd pic.twitter.com/8kju8Dbpqa
Another freshman, Alonso Carazo Barbero, finished fourth in the 1,650 freestyle, covering the mile-long swim in 15:32.30.
In the 200 breaststroke, sophomore Asahi Nagahata took sixth with a time of 1:59.69.
Shoukri, freshman Samuel McKenzie, Carney and Janin closed out WAC Championships for GCU with a third-place finish in the 400 freestyle relay with a time of 2:57.71.
"Our seniors really stepped up for this," Schaffer said. "Winning a conference championship before they graduated was really important to them and it showed. Mark (Nikolaev) and Daniill (Antipov) each won three individual events and were part of four winning relays, while Bogdan (Plavin) scored more points than he ever had before and helped get our 200 freestyle relay A cut. They were just awesome and will be sorely missed next year."
In the final diving event, the platform, GCU juniors Pietro Hufnagel Toscani and Nick Benson made the finals as Hufnagel Toscani finished second with a score of 291.35 and Benson took eighth with 229.90. Hufnagel Toscani and Benson earned spots in the finals of all three diving events.
"We absolutely could not have done this without the great job our head diving coach Hunter Shafer has done," Schaffer said. "In his first year with us, he did a fantastic job in preparing Pietro (Hunagel Toscani) and Nick (Benson) this season so that they could both be top 8 finishers all three events this year. I am excited to see how both compete at the NCAA Zone Qualifiers next week"
For more on GCU swimming and diving, follow us on Twitter and Instagram at @GCU_Swimming.
Players Mentioned
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