GRINNELL COLLEGE’S MICHAEL BRUS SETS NCAA D-III NATIONAL RECORD IN 200-YARD BACKSTROKE

Grinnell College Athletics

GRINNELL, Iowa – Grinnell College’s Michael Brus ’14 (Davenport, Iowa/North) has done many amazing things during his swimming career with the Pioneers.

On Sunday, he swam his way into the national record book during the 2013 Midwest Conference Swimming and Diving Championships.

Brus, who was named the MWC Men’s Swimmer of the Year for the third time, set an NCAA Division III record in the 200-yard backstroke with his clocking of 1:45.94. The mark is still awaiting certification.

It did take some time to determine whether Brus had set the record, though. Due to a discrepancy in the national records, it was initially thought Brus missed the NCAA D-III mark by two-tenths of a second. But upon further review, it was confirmed that Brus indeed shattered the national record, which was 1:46.01 set by Dylan Davis of Johns Hopkins in 2012.

Brus, who has earned multiple All-America honors the past two seasons and was a qualifier for the U.S. Olympic Trials in the 200-meter backstroke, won seven events at the 2013 MWC Championships and established NCAA “A” cuts in both the 100 and 200 backstrokes. He earned NCAA B cuts in the 200 and 500 freestyles, as well as part of the 200 medley and 400 medley relays while helping the Pioneers to their 12th team title in a row.

Brus currently has the fastest NCAA D-III times in both backstrokes.