By Miguel Gonzalez
Sports Editor
The men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams dominated the competition at Packer Hall from Friday, Dec. 1 to Sunday, Dec. 3. Both were victorious as the men won by 1,489 points and the women won by 960 points.
The Lions stood out from day one. For the men, sophomore Harrison Yi claimed first place in the 500-freestyle, clocking in at 4:36.74. Freshman Griffin Morgan trailed behind and got third place with a time of 4:42.25.
In the 200-medley, senior Logan Barnes and freshman Andrew Thompson finished in second and third place respectively with times of 1:54.42 and 1:56.03.
The squad of Morgan, freshman Patrick Bakey, junior Alex Skoog and senior Philip Binaco were the first to finish at the 200-freestyle relay with a time of 1:25.77. Skoog then went on to win the 50-freestyle with a time of 21.66.
The Lions swept the competition and won the 400-medley relay. The squad of Skoog, Yi, Thompson and freshman Andrew Duff completed the race in 3:24.22.
Head coach Brian Bishop believed the home invitational was a good opportunity for the team to improve and prepare for conference and national championships.
“Our goal this weekend was to learn what we need to focus on for the rest of the season to give us the best chance for success at the conference and NCAA championship,” Bishop said.
The men’s team was in full control on Saturday. The squad of Bakey, Thompson, Duff and sophomore Derek Kneisel raced the 200-medley relay and took first place with a time of 1:34.26. In the 400-individual medley, Barnes, Thompson and junior Sam Maquet claimed second, third and fourth places, respectively.
Yi then claimed first in the 200-freestyle with a time of 1:40.44. Morgan was right behind as he placed in second with a time of 1:43.15.
The Lions continued to dominate as the team claimed the top four spots in the 100-backstroke. Skoog recorded a personal record time of 49.65, missing the College record by .09 milliseconds.
The men capped off the second day with a victory in the 800-freestyle relay. Skoog, Barnes, Morgan and Yi won the relay in 6:48.72. By the end of the events, the men’s team was in first place with 977 points.
On the final day, the Lions conquered in almost every event. Barnes led opponents in the 1650-freestyle with a time of 16:18.11. Yi then took first in the 100-freestyle, clocking in at 46.86.
Bishop complimented his team’s effort to prepare for the invitational.
“Our rookies really did a great job and have responded well to our training plan,” Bishop. “Upperclassmen Skoog, Yi and Maquet had great meets and have set the tone for the rest of the season.”
The women climbed to the top of the scoreboard and accumulated 624 points. In the 500-freestyle, sophomore Annie and freshman Kelsey Ballard claimed second and third respectively with times of 5:12.90 and 5:20.47. Sophomore Kazia Moore swam to third place in the 50-freestyle, clocking in at 24.81.
On Saturday, junior Hailey Thayer and freshman Jamie Bowne took third in the 200-medley relay. Freshman Melanie Fosko had a strong performance in the 400-individual medley, claiming second place and clocking in at 4:42.35. Menninger then surged to first place in the 100-breaststroke with a time of 1:07.00.
The Lions capped off the invitational as Fosko and sophomore Marta Lawler claimed first and second place respectively in the 200-breaststroke with times of 2:27.78 and 2:27.95. At the diving board, senior Hannah Raymond got back-to-back wins in the 1- and 6-meter events.
