COLUMBUS, Ohio – Headlined by a trio of NCAA Championships qualifying times, Purdue Swimming & Diving posted 15 career-best times/scores that went into the program record books Thursday at the Ohio State Invitational.
For the second day in a row, Alex Hotta achieved an NCAAs qualifying time (46.04) – doing so in unique fashion in the 100 backstroke Thursday. Dylan Burau (46.20 in 100 back) and Maxwell Blume (1:54.87 in 200 breast) did likewise while qualifying for A finals of their events.
Hotta’s No. 3 time in team history came in a swim-off for the final berth in the A final. Louisville’s Filip Kosinski and Hotta went head-to-head after both men posted times of 46.24 in their prelim heats to tie for 10th place. Kosinski broke 46 seconds while winning the hotly contested race as both swimmers bested their prelim times.
Caitlin Hurley was an A finalist for the second night in a row for the Purdue women, again moving up the program’s all-time leaderboards. She was joined in the A final of the 500 free by classmate Kate Mouser. Hurley’s lifetime best time of 4:44.56 earned her sixth place and elevated her into eighth place in team history.
The Purdue men impressed in another springboard diving event (3-meter) while racking up 100-plus team points for the second day in a row. Tyler Wills led the way, winning the prelim with a career-best list score of 414.25 that moved the sophomore into 13th place in program history. Wills, Zach Welsh and Holden Higbie accounted for three of the top nine finishers in the final. The Boilermakers also had five of the top 17 finishers in the event overall.
Janis Dzirkalis was an A finalist in the 50 freestyle one night after eclipsing Purdue’s freshman record in the event on the leadoff leg of the 200 free relay.
Abby Marcuakitis won the B final of the 100 back while posting a team season-best time of 53.23 in the event.
Burau moved into fourth place in team history in the 100 back and continues to hold the program record in the 200 back. Blume moved up into fifth place in the 200 breast Thursday and is now top 5 in team history in both breaststroke events.
Amie Perna (5th in 100 back), Evan Mackesy (6th in 500 free), Gio Mango (7th in 200 breast), Blake Rowe (9th in 100 back), Raymond Whittaker (9th in 100 back), Pat Broderick (11th in 500 free), Nathaniel Thomas (12th in 50 free), Meghan Sharma (14th in 200 breast) and Reagan Mattice (15th in 500 free) also improved their places on Purdue’s all-time leaderboards with their lifetime bests Thursday. The men’s 400 medley relay team of Burua, Blume, Hotta and Dzirkalis accounted for the fifth-fastest time in team history as well.
The Ohio State Invitational concludes Friday with swimming prelims at 9:30 a.m., diving prelims at 11:30 a.m. and the finals session at 5:30 p.m.
Ohio State Invitational // Nov. 18-21, 2025 // McCorkle Aquatic Pavilion // Columbus, Ohio
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TEAM SCORES THROUGH THURSDAY |
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Men |
Women |
Purdue’s Top Finishers & Notables – Thursday
* – Purdue Season-Best Time/Score
^ – Personal Season-Best Time/Score
(Q) – NCAA Championships Qualifying Time
(Z) – NCAA Zone Qualifying Score
WOMEN
50 Free (21 Points)
Hannah Hill, 22.88 – Finished 8th in B Final (14 Points)
Ana Rojas, 23.05^ (Prelim Time) – Finished 4th in C Final (7 Points)
500 Free (83 Points)
Caitlin Hurley, 4:44.56* – Finished 6th in A Final (27 Points); 8th Fastest in Team History
Kate Mouser, 4:47.30^ (Prelim Time) – Finished 10th in A Final (23 Points)
Reagan Mattice, 4:47.35^ (Prelim Time) – Finished 3rd in B Final (19 Points); 15th Fastest in Team History
Adele Sands, 4:49.74^ (Prelim Time) – Finished 8th in B Final (14 Points)
100 Back (61 Points)
Abby Marcukaitis, 53.23* – Won B Final (22 Points)
Ana Rojas, 54.10^ (Prelim Time) – Finished 10th in B Final (12 Points)
Amie Perna, 54.36 – Finished 2nd in C Final (9 Points)
Ava Fasano, 54.38^ (Prelim Time) – Finished 3rd in C Final (8 Points); Lifetime Best
Susie Lee, 54.54^ – Finished 4th in C Final (7 Points)
Abbie Kehmeier, 54.98^ (Prelim Time) – Finished 8th in C Final (3 Points)
Hannah Hill, 55.29^ (Prelim Time) – Scratched from C Final
Grace Ackerman, 55.91^ – Finished 6th in D Final
200 Breast (16 Points)
Meghan Sharma, 2:15.85* – Finished 2nd in C Final (9 Points); 14th Fastest in Team History
Kate Stanley, 2:17.67^ – Finished 4th in C Final (7 Points); Lifetime Best
Maddie Phillips, 2:19.37^ – Won D Final
Platform Diving (22 Points)
Kaitlin Simons, 231.30 (Z, Prelim Score) – Finished 11th in Final (22 Points)
400 Medley Relay (88 Points)
Marcukaitis, Sharma, Hardy & Phipps, 3:39.35^ – Finished 10th (48 Points)
Perna, Stanley, Kask & Hill, 3:40.21^ (40 Points) – Finished 13th (40 Points)
Perna leadoff leg split of 53.92^ is 5th Fastest in Team History in 100 Back
MEN
50 Free (42 Points)
Janis Dzirkalis, 19.44 (Prelim Time) – Finished 8th in A Final (25 Points)
Nathaniel Thomas, 19.72^ – Finished 5th in B Final (17 Points); Improved on 12th Fastest Time in Team History
Andy Kelly, 20.27^ (Prelim Time) – Finished 8th in D Final
500 Free (14 Points)
Evan Mackesy, 4:22.22* – Finished 3rd in C Final (8 Points); 6th Fastest in Team History
Pat Broderick, 4:23.97^ – Finished 5th in C Final (6 Points); 11th Fastest in Team History
100 Back (56 Points)
Dylan Burau, 46.20^ (Q, Prelim Time) – Finished 10th in A Final (23 Points); 4th Fastest in Team History
Alex Hotta, 46.04* (Q, Swim-off Time) – Finished 5th in B Final (17 Points); 3rd Fastest in Team History
Lost Swim-off vs Louisville’s Kosinski for final berth in A Final
Blake Rowe, 47.18^ (Prelim Time) – Finished 6th in B Final (16 Points); 9th Fastest in Team History
Brody LePine, 48.46^ – Finished 5th in D Final
Gage Johnson, 48.73^ – Finished 8th in D Final
200 Breast (67 Points)
Maxwell Blume, 1:54.87* (Q, Prelim Time) – Finished 7th in A Final (26 Points); 5th Fastest in Team History
Gio Mango, 1:56.65^ – Finished 5th in B Final (17 Points); 7th Fastest in Team History
Raymond Whittaker, 1:56.75^ – 6th in B Final (16 Points); Improved on 9th Fastest Time in Team History
Charles Lee, 1:59.32^ – Finished 5th in C Final (6 Points)
Jonah Lee, 1:59.33^ (Prelim Time) – Finished 9th in C Final (2 Points); Lifetime Best
Chris Bartmess, 2:02.78^ – Finished 5th in D Final
3-Meter Diving (112 Points)
Tyler Wills, 414.25* (Z, Prelim Score) – Finished 4th in Final (29 Points); 13th Best Score in Team History
Zach Welsh, 373.65 (Z) – Finished 6th in Final (27 Points)
Holden Higbie, 342.20^ (Z) – Finished 9th in Final (24 Points)
Max Miller, 316.55 (Prelim Score) – Finished 15th in Prelim (17 Points)
Nathaniel Grannis, 305.40 (Prelim Score) – Finished 17th in Prelim (15 Points)
400 Medley Relay (84 Points)
Burau, Blume, Hotta & Dzirkalis, 3:07.77* – Finished 8th (50 Points); 5th Fastest in Team History
Johnson, Whittaker, LePine & Mazurek, 3:14.59^ – Finished 20th (34 Points)