University of Minnesota Athletics
University of Minnesota
Wisconsin
11/6/2026 9:49:00 PM | Men's Swimming & Diving, Women's Swimming & Diving
MADISON, WIS. – The University of Minnesota swimming and diving programs closed out their annual border battle with the University of Wisconsin on Friday night, falling to the Badgers with final team scores of 132.5 - 165.5 on the men's side and 115.5 - 182.5 on the women's side.
The Gophers notched their first victory of the meet in the men's 50-yard freestyle, where freshman Joey Zelen surged past the competition to claim top honors with a winning time of 19.98.
Minnesota continued its success in the breaststroke discipline as Joe Polyak dominated the field in the men's 200-yard breaststroke, touching the wall first in 1:56.80.
Building on their momentum, Minnesota delivered back-to-back victories in the 100-yard butterfly events. Morgan Thomas edged out the competition in the women's 100-yard butterfly with a premier time of 52.84, while freshman Dawson Walters captured first place in the men's 100-yard butterfly with a time of 46.59.
The Gophers capped off the swim events with wins in the final sprint relays. In the women's 200-yard freestyle relay, the Minnesota 'A' squad of Livi Wanner, Morgan Thomas, Kamdyn Periat, and Mina Kaljevic took first place with a time of 1:30.08. Immediately following, the men's 200-yard freestyle relay team of Joey Zelen, Ian Steffen, Dawson Walters, and Omar Abdelwahab combined for a first-place performance of 1:19.32 to close out the meet.
Over in the diving well, Elna Widerstrom continued her win streak with a pair of victories. Widerstrom swept both events with scores of 307.35 on the women's 1-meter springboard and 339.08 on the women's 3-meter springboard. Folke Barenius notched the victory on the men's 1-meter, tallying a score of 347.55. Braylon Goodno captured the win in the men's 3-meter with a score of 391.35.
UP NEXT
The Gophers return to the Jean K. Freeman Aquatic Center in December for the 2026 Minnesota Invite. The four-day event is scheduled to kick off Wednesday, Dec. 2, and run through Saturday, Dec. 5.
