Williamstown, Mass.-- In the first meet of a two day home-stand at Muir-Samuelson pool Women's Swimming and Diving earned a well deserved win over visiting Springfield College 187-108. The Ephs relied on their tremendous depth across the board to cement the victory, as numerous swimmers were racing in different events than usual in a bid to stay as fresh as possible over the grueling two day stretch of swimming.
Things began auspiciously for Williams as they earned first and second place in the opening 200 yd medley relay. First year Breanna Nguyen kept the momentum going for the Ephs as she took first place in the initial individual event, the 1000 yd freestyle, with a time of 10:40.06. Nguyen finished over 12 seconds ahead of her nearest competitor in the challenging distance event. Sophomore Tess Vorselen would place third (11:01.65) while first year Sarah Austin was close behind in fourth (11:03.42). Next up in the 200 yd freestyle first year sprinter Emma Nuzzo made a successful jump up in distance to capture the victory in 1:57.15. Classmate Katie Bennett would take third in 1:59.67, just out-touching fellow rookie Faye Sultan (1:59.69).
In the 100 yd backstroke senior Caroline Wilson, swimming with her classmates in their penultimate home meet, captured first with a quick swim of 58.92. Kathryn Ha was next into the wall in 1:04.34. In the 100 yd breaststroke it was time for an underclassman to step up, and sophomore Sarah Thompson was up for the challenge, winning the event in 1:09.02. Seniors Rebecca Maher (2nd, 1_10.52) and Kelsey Roggensack (3rd, 1:10.55) completed a Williams sweep in the event. In the 200 yd butterfly it would be veteran leadership once again carrying the day as Katherine O'Leary (2:08.29), earned the top spot. Sophomore Catherine Treesh and first year Anna Epstein, meanwhile, provided a potent 1-2 punch in the 50 yd freestyle, finishing in 25.20 and 25.26 respectively.
In the diving events junior standout McKenzie Murdoch bounced back from a second place finish in the 1m competition (279.90) to take first in the 3m competition (298.50). Sophomore Michelle Higgins also dove extremely well, taking third on both boards (1m: 260.18, 3m: 271.43).
In the 100 yd freestyle Emma Nuzzo would lead the way, although was just out-touched for first place, settling for second in 54.61. Senior Bryn Dunbar placed third (54.87) while Treesh took fourth (55.06). In the 200 yd backstroke Caroline Wilson reprised her earlier victory in the 100 yd event, swimming away from the field to finish in 2:08.85. Sarah Thompson was second with a time of 2:11.03, while rookie Faye Sultan claimed fourth (2:16.45). Switching strokes over to the breaststroke the Ephs found just as much success, with first year Paige Haller winning the 200 yd event in 2:31.92. Just behind was senior Lizzy Visconti in second (2:32.36).
Breanna Ngyuen built upon her earlier victory in the 1000 with a second crown in the 500 yd freestyle, easing into the wall in 5:15.27 to finish first of four Williams swimmers. In succession the Ephs showed their depth as seniors Rebecca Maher (5:18.66) and Kelsey Roggensack (5:24.26), alongside sophomore Tess Vorselen (5:27.04), crowded into the top four spots. Not content with just two individual victories, Caroline Wilson took home her third and final win in the 100 yd butterfly, finishing first in a time of 58.08. Classmates Ha and O'Leary made it another sweep, finishing 2nd (58.68) and 3rd (59.46) respectively. In the 200 yd Individual Medley Williams once again demonstrated tremendous depth, finishing with the top five times. Leading the way was Sarah Thompson (2:11.79), followed by Katie Bennett (2:13.75), Sarah Austin (2:18.95), and sophomores Molly Prindle (2:19.87) and Erica Bucki (2:20.87).
Overall the team has much to be proud of and will be looking to continue their winning ways as they take on two NESCAC opponents in Tufts and Wesleyan in a tri-meet at Samuelson-Muir Pool on Sunday starting at 1 pm.
