The Hopkins men’s and women’s swimming teams traveled to Gettysburg to compete in the final Fall Fast Festival this past weekend. The Jays came out strong and did not look back, tallying 1129.5 points to take the top spot.
Host Gettysburg came in second with 758 points, followed by Mary Washington with 704.5 and Dickinson with 427. En route to the team’s victory, the Jays added seven more pool records accompanied by three NCAA automatic qualifying times.
The Jays got their start in the 200 Medley Relay when junior Joe Acquaviv, sophomore Gideon Hou, senior Carter Gisriel and junior Anthony Lordi posted a time of 1:35.91. This time was not only good enough for first on the day, but third overall in Hopkins’ history and a pool record. The Jays first place group was followed closely by senior Dylan Coggin, junior Alec Polyak, sophomore Ed Pagano and senior Tyler Woods with a time of 1:35.06 to take second place.
In the next event, the 400 IM, although the coveted first place finish eluded Hopkins, the Jays once again proved their depth by capturing second through fifth. Freshman Justin Tang finished second with a provisional time of 4:03.99. Also a freshman, Bill Grayley took third place with a provisional time of 4:05.52.
The Blue Jays dominated the 100 Fly, taking first through sixth in the event. Senior Nick Schmidt finished first with a time of 49.11, an automatic NCAA qualifying time. The Jays also took second and third place to round out the podium.
In the 200 Free, Lordi took the race with a provisional time and pool record swim of 1:39.38.
In the 100 Breast, Hou led the way with a time of 57.07, notching another pool record for the team.
The evening session looked similar to the events in the morning with the Blue Jays dominating the top spots. The Jays took a relay win with Coggin, Gisriel, Woods and Lordi who posted a time of 1:21.98. The events that followed the opening relay once again saw many victories by the Hopkins’ swimmers.
Not to be outdone, the women’s team saw equal success in Gettysburg during the tournament, accumulating wins and breaking records along the way. The Blue Jays amassed 1263 points to take the top spot in the tournament, followed by Mary Washington with 740, and by Gettysburg with 648 and Dickinson with 420.
The team came out strong with a first and second place finish in the 200 Medley Relay. Freshman Sean McGrath, junior Sarah Rinsma, freshman Ellen Marcus and sophomore Ana Bogdanovski posted a time of 1:45.36, which was another pool record for the program.
Next, sophomore Sammi Fox swam a record breaking 400 IM with a time of 4:28.08. Senior Nicole Wain followed her in second place with a time of 4:41.36. In the 100 Fly, sophomore Kylie Holden took first place with a time of 58.95. The Blue Jays continued to dominate with their performance in the 200 Free as the Jays swept the top six spots in the race. Following this sweep, the Jays also added the top three finishes in the 100 Back.
The Blue Jays ended the evening with first and second finishes in the 400 Medley relay, another school record.
The Fall Fast Festival was the final event for the Men’s and Women’s swimming teams for the 2012 calendar year. The Blue Jays proved utterly dominant in the event for yet another strong meet. For the men, Hou, Gisriel, Lordi, Coggin, Woods, Schmidt and Davis combined to set seven pool records while McGrath, Rinsma, Marcus, Bogdvanksi and Fox combined for three pool records on the women’s side.
Without another race until 2013, the Blue Jays swimming team will look to carry their momentum through winter break and into the new year. Next up, Hopkins will head to North Palm Beach, FL to take on Maine on Jan. 4.
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