By Retta Race on SwimSwam
Duke versus NC State – Friday Exhibition
- Friday, January 17th
- SCY
- Results (pdf)
We reported how Duke and NC State took to the pool on Friday, January 17th in a suited exhibition competition prior to their official NCAA Division I dual on Saturday, January 18th.
One of the key swims which flew under the radar a bit during that suited yards battle was thrown down by Wolfpack member Nyls Korstanje.
Junior Korstanje took on the fly leg of the men’s 200y medley relay, crushing a relay split of 19.56. The next fastest swimmer of the 3-team field on fly was Duke’s Charlie Gingrich who logged a leg of 20.85.
Korstanje’s teammates of John Healy (back, 22.28), Rafal Kusto (breast, 23.57) and Noah Henderson (free, 19.19) combined to put up a collective effort of 1:24.60 to take the exhibition race.
Although unofficial, that time would rank as the 15th fastest in the nation this NCAA Division I season. However, NC State already ranks #3 in the nation with their 1:23.40 from November.
For Korstanje specifically, his 19.56 ranks as the 4th fastest 50y fly relay split in history, according to the USA Swimming database. Only Joseph Schooling, then of Texas, ranks higher with bests of 19.36 and 19.45 from 2016 and 2017, respectively. Additionally, Pitt’s Blaise Vera scored a split of 19.52 at the 2021 NCAA Division 1 Men’s Championships. As such, Korstanje is now the #3 performer all-time in terms of 50y fly relay splits.
22-year-old Korstanje has proven his mettle across both yards and meters, owning the Dutch national records in the long course meters 50 and 100 butterfly. In addition to relays, Korstanje raced the men’s 100 fly individual event in Tokyo this summer, ultimately placing 12th overall.
Read the full story on SwimSwam: NC State’s Nyls Korstanje Puts Up 4th Fastest Fly Relay Leg In History