The men's and women's swimming and diving teams began their seasons this weekend, each splitting tri-meets against Middlebury and Conn. College on Saturday and defeating Keene State in Hamilton Pool on Sunday.
Saturday's action was highly competitive for both squads. The men beat host Middlebury 166-128 and lost to Conn. College 150-130, and both women's contests were decided by less than five points, as Tufts beat the Camels 150-147 but fell to the Panthers 152-148.
In the Jumbos' first home meet yesterday, the men prevailed 163-133 while the women cruised to a 172-124 victory.
Women beat Keene and Conn., can't catch Middlebury
The women won nine of 16 events as they defeated Keene State yesterday. Sophomore Mia Greenwald was the lone member of the team to win three events, taking the 100- and 200-yard butterfly races and swimming a leg for the winning 200-yard medley relay team to kick off the afternoon.
Senior co-captain Courtney Adams and freshmen Samantha Swilinski and Kathryn Coniglio earned two victories apiece, each winning an individual race and a relay. The trio won the 50-, 100- and 200-yard freestyles, respectively.
Sophomore Sami Bloom swept the diving portion of the meet, taking the 1-meter and 3-meter events. The Jumbos ended the day in style with a 200 freestyle relay triumph for Adams, Swilinski, Coniglio and freshman Scarlett Hao.
"The last couple years our sprint freestyle relays have been a little bit slower than our medleys," Adams said. "This year we have three great freshman sprinters [Swilinski, Coniglio and Hao], which is really nice to have. I think the freshmen as a class are great."
On Saturday, first-place results were harder to come by. The Jumbos had just four, two of which came from Bloom in the 1- and 3-meter dives. Greenwald won the 100-yard butterfly, finishing in under a minute.
The foursome of Adams, Swilinski, Coniglio and Hao capped off the meet with a crucial victory in the 200 free relay, which lifted the Jumbos over Conn. College, 150-147, but left them four points shy of Middlebury's total.
"Overall, both of our meets were phenomenal," Adams said. "To win against Conn. College was huge, and to lose to Middlebury by only a few points — that was huge. I think everyone is really excited to see what the rest of the season brings."
The women will return to action after the Thanksgiving break with a dual meet at Wellesley on Nov. 30.
Men off to 2-1 start
The men's swimming team, like its female counterpart, won nine events while starting and finishing strong against Keene State on Sunday.
In the 200-yard medley relay, seniors E.J. Testa, Brandon Ching and co-captain Owen Rood and sophomore Drew Berman were victorious, as were Rood, sophomore Austin Wood, and freshmen Will Parker and John Devine in the 200-yard freestyle relay. Both wins came by less than one-second margins.
"It was nice to see a couple freshmen stepping up in the relays and putting up some really quick times," Rood said. "We definitely showed that we can put together some fast relays."
Berman, who had the most successful weekend of any Tufts swimmer, posted first-place finishes in both the 200-yard butterfly and the 200-yard breaststroke and swam a second-place effort in the 200-yard individual medley. Rood, sophomore Christian Jones and freshman Michael Napolitano also won individual races, while Jones, senior Lou Tamposi and sophomore Kyle Savidge added runner-up results.
Sophomore Johann Schmidt dominated on the diving boards — as was the norm last season — and the Jumbos took the dual meet by 30 points.
At Saturday's tri-meet against Middlebury and Conn. College, the Jumbos' day was again sandwiched by strong relay results. Testa, Debbaut, Ching and Rood set the tone with a second-place finish in the 200 medley relay, and Rood, Testa, Parker and Devine won the meet's final event, the 200 free relay.
Berman led the Jumbos' individual charge by winning the 200-yard breaststroke and the 200-yard individual medley, while Savidge earned a win in the 1,000-yard free. Schmidt soared to victory in the 1- and 3-meter dives, and Napolitano placed second in the 200 butterfly, making a strong impression in his inaugural Tufts effort.
The Jumbos defeated Middlebury, but lost to Conn. College for the first time since 2003.
"They definitely brought in a really strong freshman class," Rood said. "I think it says a lot about the NESCAC — any one of these schools can bring in a great recruiting class."
Still, the Jumbos are not deterred.
"I think we swam really well this weekend," Rood said. "We haven't had that much time to put the work in, but we definitely showed that at the end of the season we'll have the heart to finish the races in the right way."
The Jumbos have two weeks off before the MIT Invitational on Dec. 2-3.
