MILWAUKEE - The Milwaukee men's swimming & diving program defeated the visiting UIC Flames today by a final score of 156-144. The win marks the Panthers' first victory over the Flames since 2021.
 
Starting the day strong was Milwaukee's 200 yard medley relay team. Consisting of Hayden Christiansen, Andrew Jones, Nik Wheeler, and Ben Lorenz, the team finished first with a time of 1:33.85.
 
"It was a fun night tonight for both programs, and pulling out two wins over a very fast and well coached program like UIC will be a highlight to our season," head coach Kyle Clements said. "What makes it even better is that it was a team win. We obviously had our event winners, but in a close meet like this it comes down to those touching out the opposition for the 3rd, 4th, and 5th places and collecting very valuable points."
 
After a strong second place finish by Jay Jensen in the 1000 yard freestyle, Charlie House touched the wall with a time of 1:44.38 in the 200 yard freestyle, taking first. Wheeler added an individual win to his daily total, topping the field in the 100 yard butterfly.
 
Lorenz also added to his win total, taking first in the 50 yard freestyle. Finishing right behind him were Jackson Ahrens and Griffin Hawley, as Milwaukee managed to sweep the top three in the event.
 
House finished in the top spot in the 100 yard freestyle, and Christiansen took first in the 100 yard backstroke with a time of 52.55. Jensen was the first to touch the wall in the 500 yard freestyle, and Wheeler added another win, this time in the 50 yard butterfly.
 
Capping the day with a win was Milwaukee's 200 yard freestyle relay, touching the wall in a time of 1:24.44.
 
"Tomorrow will be interesting and exciting as well," Clements added. "We head down to IUPUI very early in the morning and face some of the fastest teams in the Horizon League. It will be our first time on the road this season, and the first time ever for the freshmen. It's a quick turnaround, but we are looking forward to taking part of a fast meet."
 
Milwaukee hits the road Saturday to face IUPUI and Cleveland State in a tri-meet. The tri-meet will be the first conference competition of the season for the Panthers.