After attending the Metropolitan Conference Championship at Rutgers University this past weekend, the Lions dominated the 19-team field as the men’s and women’s teams finished first and second, respectively. The title for the men marked their seventh consecutive and 16th overall in program history.
“We were all expecting to do well. We knew that we put the work in all season and had a great taper,” senior captain Adam Schneider said. “With the chemistry we had this year, we all knew we were capable of doing something special.”
They definitely did not disappoint as they won the MET title with 1,455 points. Behind them in a distant second was the University of Bridgeport with the score of 1,083 points.
Schneider’s weekend was stellar, as he set a school record and qualified for NCAAs in the process. In the 50-yard freestyle, the captain finished in 20.22, the best time in the College’s history. Schneider also won the 100-yard butterfly event, completing the race in 50.19 seconds. Behind him was freshman Joseph Dunn who finished in 50.54 seconds. Schneider also contributed in the second leg of the 200-yard freestyle relay team as he and juniors William Kasper, Philip Hawley and Stephen Gibson took first place with a time of 1:20.69.
“It’s always nice to get a new best time and it just so happens my previous best time was the record,” Schneider said. “But breaking the 200-free relay record was the one of the best swimming experiences I’ve ever been a part of and that was awesome.”
Senior Mike Caputo also had a great weekend, as he broke the College’s 1,650-yard freestyle record by 13 seconds. The time of 15:50.34 not only got Caputo a first place finish, but also qualified him for NCAAs.
As for the women’s team, their second place finish broke their streak of five consecutive MET titles. The Lady Lions had a team total of 1,021 points behind Long Island University Post who compiled 1,298 points.
Senior Kayleigh Shangle won the 100-yard breastroke for the second straight year as she finished with a time of 1:04.33. At the 200-yard medley relay, Shangle teamed up with senior Ashley Conroy, junior Maria Ciaralli and sophomore Brennah Ross to earn third place with a NCAA Provisional time of 1:47.11.
Also having a big performance were some of the divers, as seen in senior Danica Roskos and junior Sabrina Lucchesi, who respectively placed first and second at the 3-meter and 1-meter events. After an impressive weekend, Roskos was named MET Diver of the Meet for the third consecutive year.
Although the team result may not have gone the women’s way, the Lady Lions are still content with NCAA’s coming up in Shenandoah, Texas. For the past three years, they have finished in the top-10 at Nationals.
“I’m so proud of everyone. This year we’ve had probably the closest team in my four years and for everyone to do so well, it’s very rewarding,” Schneider said. “Some guys didn’t perform as they expected and we can’t have every single guy (get) best times all the time, but everyone came away with a swim they were happy about.”
