Bearcats Surge on Day 2 of NWC Championships
Trai Xiong and Ka’olapa Masuko Move Up Record Books
BOISE, Idaho – The Willamette University men's swimming team delivered a series of powerhouse performances on Saturday at the Northwest Conference Championships, led by a dominant showing in the 100-yard breaststroke that saw two Bearcats cement their names in the program's all-time Top 10 list.
Breaststroke Duo Makes History
The highlight of the night came in the A-Final of the 100-yard breaststroke, where sophomore Trai Xiong and junior Ka'olapa Masuko went head-to-head with the conference's best.
Xiong surged to a 4th-place finish with a blistering time of 56.39. This mark officially overtakes Kjell Moline's 1997 record (57.58) to become the new #1 fastest time in Willamette history.
Masuko, who already held the #3 spot on the Top 10 list entering the meet, improved his personal best to 56.99 to finish 5th overall. His time now stands as the #2 mark all-time for the Bearcats, moving him ahead of his previous best of 57.97 set in 2024.
Relay Excellence
The Bearcats opened the evening session with a strong 7th-place finish in the 200-yard medley relay. The quartet of Ethan Barker, Ka'olapa Masuko, Trai Xiong, and Kevin Olmedo clocked in at 1:36.52. Their performance was less than a second off the school record (1:35.65) set in 1992, proving the current squad is among the fastest in program history.
Individual Standouts
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200-Yard Freestyle: Sophomore Paul Keith battled in the B-Final, securing 15th place overall with a time of 1:52.02, adding valuable points to the Bearcats' team total.
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100-Yard Butterfly: Freshman Ethan Barker posted a competitive 55.22 in the morning preliminaries.
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400-Yard IM: Sophomore Lucas Cardenas represented Willamette in the grueling individual medley, finishing with a time of 4:49.51.