The Colby College Swim Team took on an impressive Amherst team this Saturday, November 20th. Ranked in the top ten Division III teams for both men and women, Amherst defeated both teams with the women score ending in 145 to 112, and the men's 139 to 97. Though competing without a full squad, the Mules swam with both pride and speed, and had a number of personal achievements during the meet.
The meet began with the women's 200 medley relays taking 3rd, 4th, and 6th, and the men taking 4th and 6th. Smart pacing paid off for first years Jenna Mahaffie, Patricia Kelly, Kelsey Cromie, and Anders Peterson in the 200, as they placed 3rd, 5th, 6th, and 4th, respectively. In the 100 back, Colby had a 4-5-6 finish from Sarah Nalven, Kayleigh Monahan, and Annie Bacher, while the men placed 3rd and 4th with Brendan Tschaen (58.88) and John Madeira (59.11). The duo of Josie Bazemore and Martha Mesna placed 4th and 5th in the women's 100 breaststroke, and the same result was true for the men with Craig Zevin and Adam Spierer. Kathryn Lee and Leah Walpuck had solid showings in the 200 fly, placing 3rd (2:18.70) and 5th (2:37.72), and the sole 200 flyer for the men, Colin McLaughlin placed 4th. The team showed off their sprinting in the 50 free, with Mahaffie, Rosie Wennberg, and Sarah Hansen placing 4th, 5th, and 6th, while James Hootsmans placed 3rd for the men and Tom Hurley placed 5th.
The teams were excited to see Martha Mesna in her first collegiate diving competition, and she did not disapoint placing 3rd in the 1 meter diving.
In the lone victory of the day, Kathryn Lee sped through the 100 free in a time of 55.96 (also 1.5 seconds faster than her time last year in the event), while Monahan was 4th with a 58.19 and Hansen in 6th with a time of 59.88. Sprinters Hootsmans and Hurley placed 4th and 5th in the 100 free for the men, with times of 54.20 and 55. 82. Kelly, Bacher, and Nalven joined forces for the women's 200 back, placing 4th (2:21.59), 5th (2:28.34), and 6th (3:11.78), while Madeira and Tschaen swam smart races for the men, with times of 2:06.07 and 2:11.57. The women's 200 breaststroke gave Bazemore and Mesna another chance to shine, with times of 2:39.53 and 2:49.43, while Ryan Fischer, Colin McLaughlin and Adam Spierer swam strong races for the men, with times of 2:20.92, 2:30.74, and 2:35.66. In the 500 free, distance specialist Heather Cronin finished first for the Mules, with a time of 5:35.65. Just after her was Shannon Kooser in 6:01.5 and Carly Rushford in 6:12.27 (a six-second drop from her time in the event at this meet last year).
For the men, Anders Peterson was the sole competitor for the Mules, finishing in 5:08.13. Rosie Wennberg and Leah Walpuck had strong races in the 100 fly, with Wennberg's 1:02.42 two seconds faster than her 2009 swim at this meet, and Walpuck's 1:08.64 a good six seconds faster than her time the previous year. In the 200 I.M. Kathryn Lee had another fast swim of 2:18.69, followed by teammates Josie Bazemore in 2:27.64 and Heather Cronin in 2:32.87. The the crowd-pleasing race of the day, the men's 200 IM pitted Ryan Fischer, Andy Peterson, and Colin McLaughlin up against Amherst's men, most notably Peterson's brother. The men finished strong, with times of 2:08.94, 2:10.71, and 2:15.04. In the final relay, Colby's Monahan, Hansen, Mahaffie, and Wennberg were a mere second behind Amherst with a 1:45.38, while the men's relay of Madeira, Tschaen, Hootsmans, and Spierer finished in 1:36.99.
The team's next meet will be the MIT Invitational at MIT the weekend of December 3rd.
