In a historic day for the Bloomsburg University men’s swim team, the Huskies have just received a place on the national poll. 

Earning the 24 spot on the ranking, the College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) has voted the Huskies into the national poll for the first time this season.

The Huskies are the only other team from the Pennsylvania State Athletic Conference (PSAC) to have ended an above 25 spot on the poll. The rival West Chester University have been the only other team to make the poll. Earning the spot above them, the Rams have quite a history with the Huskies.

Occurring next week, the two will again face off this season in the 2020 Championships. Second place has been a popular theme in the Husky’s recent history. They have gotten second in the last four championship meets, and in six of the last seven. The time is now for the Huskies to finally grab the gold and shut down the 21 consecutive PSAC titles that the Rams have captured.

An impressive season thus far, the Huskies finished their regular 2019-20 season with an overall record of 6-3. Some of the biggest hurdles this season for the Huskies came at the hands of Division I opponents. 

The Huskies fell to Lehigh University and Penn State University during the season. The loss to Lehigh happened earlier in the season, occurring on October 18 and the more recent defeat to Penn State happened on Jan. 17. 

Bloomsburg is hot of their most recent win though. They completed excellently in the two-day John A. Pidgeon Memorial Invitational on Jan. 31 and Feb. 1. The Huskies crushed the hosting Indiana University of Pennsylvania Crimson Hawks 200-95.

A total of seven NCAA “B” cuts for the season have been earned by three of their best swimmers. Senior Kyle Dix, junior Collin Hummel, and sophomore Colton Schnars all have swim very well throughout the season. Their goal is to hone their skills and push themselves even further to make the cuts for the NCAA Division National Championships, occurring this March. 

Sprinting has proven to be the strong suit for Dix this season. He nabbed three “B” times in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 20.63, the 100-yard freestyle in 45.35, and the 100-yard butterfly in 48.56. 

Hummel earned his cut in the 50-yard freestyle after swimming a time of 20.62. Schnars took the other three cuts in the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 20.60, the 100-yard backstroke in 48.75, and the 200-yard backstroke in 1:48.31.

Relays have also proven to be an area of strength for the Huskies. The 200-yard freestyle relay is only 15-hundthers of a second from reaching the qualifying time. They have swum a time of 1:21.35 when they need a time of 1:21.20.

Both the 200-yard and 400-yard medley relay team are about two seconds away from hitting the qualifying mark. The 400-yard freestyle relay is within three seconds of reaching the qualifying time for the national championships.

The 2020 PSAC Championships will be held on Wednesday, Feb. 19, through Saturday, Feb. 22. The Huskies will travel to the Graham Aquatic Center located in York, Pennsylvania.