HAMPTON, Va. – The 18th-ranked Salisbury University men's swimming team saw one of its senior leaders finally take home the gold, highlighting a strong third day at the 2026 New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) Swimming & Diving Championships on Saturday at the Hampton Aquaplex.
The Sea Gulls strengthened their hold on second place with 928 points, well clear of third-place Merchant Marine (778) and over 300 points up on the rest of the field of nine while trailing only favorites TCNJ (1,188).
TOP PERFORMERS
- Dominic Kazzi achieved a career capstone by winning the 100-yard breaststroke in a time of 54.56 seconds, shaving 0.52 seconds off his qualifying time to make the NCAA B-cut and overtake event favorite Tyler McGeehan of TCNJ by 11 hundredths of a second.
- One of the Sea Gulls' most vocal leaders and a visible face of the program's 2020s turnaround, Kazzi becomes the first Salisbury man to win an individual conference title since Josh Brown took a trio of Capital Athletic Conference (CAC) crowns in 2020. The senior also gives the SU men its first gold medal of the 2026 NJAC Championships.
- Aidan Loehr joined Kazzi on the podium in the 100 breast, finishing third and surpassing the B-cut benchmark in 55.06 seconds.
- Salisbury opened the day with a silver medal in the 200 freestyle relay, riding the waves from Cameron Byrd, Mason Potts, Michael DeSimone, and Everett Rachael to a 1:21.34 mark that trailed victors TCNJ by just 26 hundredths of a second.
- Ethan Lloyd touched second in the 400 individual medley in 3:58.95, while Matt Merke (4:04.25) placed seventh.
- Byrd finished within a third of a second of the champ in the 100 butterfly, settling for silver in 47.53 seconds to make the B-cut. Owen Brewer (48.89) finished close behind in fourth.
- In the 100 backstroke, Potts (50.15) took fifth place and Rachael (50.45) seventh.
- Rachael (1:40.90) and Shane Hall (1:41.48) placed sixth and seventh, respectively, in the 200 free.
The Sea Gulls will look to finish off a team silver medal on the fourth and final day of the NJAC Championships. Sunday prelims will begin at 9:30 a.m. with finals set for 5 p.m.
Salisbury University is a proud member of NCAA Division III with primary membership in the Coast-to-Coast Athletic Conference, along with affiliate membership in the New Jersey Athletic Conference (football, men's & women's swimming), Coastal Lacrosse Conference (men's lacrosse), State University of New York Athletic Conference (field hockey), and Colonial Women's Golf Conference (women's golf). With over 500 student-athletes in 23 varsity sports, SU is recognized as one of the nation's most competitive intercollegiate athletics programs regardless of division, featuring dedicated coaches and staff that foster excellence on and off the field. The Sea Gulls have won a combined 23 team national championships, 24 individual national championships, and 206 conference championships, and have produced 54 Academic All-Americans.
To Make Tomorrow Yours at Salisbury University, and learn more about Sea Gull Athletics' tradition of excellence, visit SUSeaGulls.com or follow on social media @SUSeaGulls.
