Complete Results
CHESTNUT HILL, MA – Williams men's swimming faced off against Boston College on Saturday, falling to the Eagles 182-118. The men won six events against their Division I opponents.
The meet began with the 200-yard medley relay, which was won by BC with a 1:33.71. The Eph quartet of rookie Ben Lin, Jake Tamposi '16, junior Thad Ricotta, and rookie Grant Johnson placed second with 1:35.15, touching out the Eagles' "B" relay.
In the 1000-yard freestyle, junior Christian Gronbeck continued his winning streak in the event with a 9:38.50. Gronbeck charged from behind during the second half of the race to convincingly win the race by an impressive 14 seconds.
The Eagles captured first and second place in the 200-yard freestyle, before the Ephs charged back with a strong showing in the 100-yard backstroke, where rookie standout Ben Lin placed first with a blistering 51.02.
"Distance free and backstrokes were standout areas today," said Head Coach Steve Kuster. "We also posted some faster times than the previous two meets, which is always good to see after a hard week of practice and a long day of traveling."
The Ephs saw a close race in the 200-yard butterfly, when junior Thad Ricotta was just edged out for first place, taking second with a 1:55.41.
In the 50-yard freestyle, BC's Dan Kelly placed first with an unbelievable 20.17, smashing the meet record in the event set by Williams' Ben Wampler in 2010 by nearly a second. Johnson took second in the race, posting a solid 21.62.
After the break, the men saw a strong performance from sophomore Alex McCarter, who took first in the 200-yard backstroke in a 1:56.43. McCarter's win was followed by another impressive swim from Gronbeck, who cruised to first in the 500-yard freestyle in 4:43.24.
The Ephs collected two more wins on the night, the first came from Lin in the 100-yard fly, continuing his breakout meet with a remarkable 50.97. In the 200-yard IM, sophomore Knox Young, who edged out his opponent in the final five yards, posting a 1:55.16 for first.
"We still have a lot to improve on, including having everyone racing well at the same meet," said Kuster. "In these next few weeks, every individual needs to work on their own specific areas so we can improve the collective effort."
After exams, the men will head down to the annual trip to Fort Lauderdale for training trip. "Florida is always huge physical and mental effort that is key to our success. When we're down there the team will solidify as a unit, with an understanding of what our goals are and how to achieve our objectives for the second half of the season," said Kuster.
The men will return to competition on Saturday, Jan. 4th when they host Boston University, another Div. I opponent added to the schedule this year at 1:00 PM.
