Men's swimming team has mixed results on road

For the North Carolina men’s swimming team, going on the road to the University of Texas and Texas Christian University in the same weekend was difficult enough. Finding a place to stay, though, proved to be the real test.

“On Tuesday, we found out that the hotel had moved us from right next to Southern Methodist University to downtown,” coach Rich DeSelm said. “Those sorts of things — that uncertainty is always there — but I couldn’t have been more proud of how (the team) handled things.”

A last-minute housing switch was just one in a long line of challenges for UNC during the trip, which split the competition this weekend.

After touching down in Dallas on Wednesday, the Tar Heels drove to Austin for their dual meet against the Longhorns Thursday evening . This was North Carolina’s first ever dual meet against Texas, which DeSelm noted has a reputation for producing both NCAA championships and Olympians.

Ultimately, the Longhorns proved to be too deep and too quick for the Tar Heels, whose men lost 171.5-126.5. Sophomore Nic Graesser, who won the 100 yard backstroke and was a part of the winning 400 yard freestyle relay, said he saw the benefits that came with facing a national power like Texas.

“They were obviously a really strong team, but the whole experience opened our eyes,” Graesser said. “Our whole team realized we aren’t too far behind them.

“We know what improvements we have to make to get better now, so I think it was definitely a great experience.”

North Carolina then travelled from Austin to Fort Worth for their Saturday meet against Texas Christian University. TCU, while not as storied a program as Texas, still presented DeSelm’s group with obstacles, most notably a second meet in two days’ time.

Sophomore Logan Heck, who finished second in the 200 yard medley relay and third in the 50 yard freestyle versus Texas, won both events against the Horned Frogs. Heck’s performance, along with two individual victories apiece from Brad Dillon, Eugene Tee and Dominick Glavich, helped the men’s team to earn a 188-109 victory.

“When you’re travelling as much as we were and swimming two meets so close together, of course that is going to take a toll,” Heck said. “Our job is to swim tired and swim fast tired, and I think we did a good job of that this weekend.”

DeSelm acknowledged that the weekend was designed to stretch his team physically and mentally, but was pleased with the way the men responded.

“This was a special trip that we worked hard to set up; we wanted to make the most of our trip,” he said.

“They knew they had a long weekend ahead of them, and we put them under a bit of stress intentionally, but this was a great opportunity for our student-athletes to find out what they are made of.”

sports@dailytarheel.com