Panthers Dethrone Ephs After 35 Year Dominance

Author: Shannon Egan

In 1966, the men's swimming and diving team from Williams College began a 35-year New England Small College Athletic Conference (NESCAC) winning streak. It lasted until Sunday. Now, thanks to the men from Middlebury, it's over. For the first time in as long as anyone can remember, Williams lost and the men from Middlebury were declared champions.

The meet, which lasted three days and saw an extraordinary amount of NCAA qualifiers, NESCAC records and varsity records on the part of the swimmers and divers, couldn't have been more perfect. Middlebury finished with 1,544 points, followed by Williams with 1,422 points and Amherst with 1,301 points.

From the very first race, it was obvious the meet would be a close one. The 200-yard freestyle relay team of David Hawkins '05, co-captain Scott Strickler '02, Jason Korsmeyer '05 and co-captain Grayson Stuntz '02 took second with a National B consideration time of 1:24.85.

Other highlights from Friday night began with the 50-yard breaststroke, in which senior Mike Malloy took fourth with a time of 27.43, followed close behind by Steve Kinney '03, who took sixth in 27.56. Stuntz won the first event for the Panthers, taking the 50-yard butterfly in a new NESCAC meet record of 23.23. Also in the 50 butterfly, Max Ovsjanikovs '05 took sixth in 23.74. Sophomore Karl Whittington started off the distance races on a good note, as he took seventh in the 500-yard freestyle in 4:47.54.

The 50-yard backstroke, a race Middlebury traditionally dominates, saw Strickler, Andrew Boyce '02 and Korsmeyer take first, third and eighth, respectively. Strickler's 24.52 was a new NESCAC meet record. Stuntz, up again, took second in a very close race in the 200- yard individual medley, finishing with a National A qualifying time of 1:53.04. Finally, Hawkins took fifth in the 50-yard freestyle in 21.60. Friday night ended as the Panther's took second in the 400-yard medley relay. The team of Strickler, Mike Malloy '02, Stuntz and Korsmeyer finished with a new NESCAC and meet record and National B consideration time of 3:27.69.

Saturday night's session began on a high note as well, as the 200- yard medley relay team of Strickler, Malloy, Stuntz and Matt Clark '04 took first, dominating the field with a National B consideration time of 1:34.11. In the 1,000-yard freestyle, Whittington broke the varsity record, finishing fourth with a time of 9:50.45. Junior Andrew Sterling took seventh in the same race, in a time of 10:05.16. In the 100-yard butterfly, Stuntz captured his second NESCAC title and new meet record of 50.70, a National B time. In the 100 butterfly as well, Hawkins took fourth in 52.01.

Also on Saturday, first-year Adam Rahal had an impressive 200-yard freestyle, as he took eighth in a time of 1:46.60. Malloy took the consolation heat of the 100-yard breaststroke and took first in his career-best time of 59.84. The trio of backstrokers, Strickler, Korsmeyer and Boyce, took second, third and sixth in the event. Strickler's 52.49 and Korsmeyer's 52.99 were both National B qualifying times. Finally, the relay team of Hawkins, Rahal, Whittington and Korsmeyer finished up the session with a 7:03.70 in the 800-yard freestyle relay.

The final night, the Panthers held their ground. They knew the best would come. In the first event, the 1,650-yard freestyle, Whittington took sixth in 16:45.87, followed closely by Sterling, who captured eighth in 16:50.00. In the 200-yard backstroke, Strickler took first with a National B time of 1:54.49. Korsmeyer took fifth (1:56.55) and Boyce took seventh (1:57.48). Hawkins made another strong appearance in the 100-yard freestyle, as he took fifth in 47.61. First-year Rob Norman made his first National B consideration time in the 200-yard butterfly, taking fifth in 1:56.17. In the 100-yard IM, Kinney took second in 54.66, followed by Ovsjanikovs who finished eighth in 56.88. In the final relay of the meet, the 400-yard freestyle, the team of Hawkins, Strickler, Korsmeyer and Stuntz earned a National A time, finishing second in 3:07.13.

The divers were, as always, an integral part of Middlebury's success. On Friday night, in the one-meter competition, captain Derek Chicarilli took first, scoring 473.60 points. First-year diver Blake Lyons also had an amazing performance, finishing fifth with 402.90 points. The results on Sunday night were similar, as Chicarilli captured his second win with 500 points on the three-meter board. Lyons scored 378.55 points, finishing fifth once again.

Middlebury dominated the awards podium as well. Lisa Gibbs, head diving coach, was selected as the NESCAC Diving Coach of the Year for the third consecutive year. Chicarilli was given two honors: he was selected as the NESCAC Diver of the Year and was also awarded Senior High Point Winner, for scoring the most points over his four years. Head Swim Coach Peter Solomon was selected as the NESCAC Swimming Coach of the Year.

Solomon agreed that it was the depth of the team, the energy and the enthusiasm that, together, led to the win. He said he was confident in the team all along, knowing that a championship is always where Middlebury swimmers and divers perform best.

At the beginning of the season, Solomon made a deal with his swimmers that if they won NESCACs, he would shave his head. Upon receiving their first place plaque, the swimmers and divers sat him down in a chair on the pool deck, and each senior took his chance at payback.

Up next, the men who qualified will head to Miami University of Ohio for NCAA Division III Championships.