CAMBRIDGE, Mass.—UMBC and Boston University highlighted the America East swimming and diving schedule last weekend as the two programs met for a dual meet in Baltimore, Md., on Saturday. UMBC was victorious in both the men’s and women’s meets. Three Retrievers and one Terrier earned America East weekly accolades for their performances in the meet. UMBC sophomores Pierre De Waal (Pretoria, South Africa/Tuks Sport/Cleveland State) and Andrew Eckhoff (Chelmsford, Mass./Chelmsford) earned Male Swimmer and Diver of the Week honors, respectively. UMBC junior Ashley Sippel (Rockville, Md./Thomas Wooton) took the Female Swimmer of the Week honor while Boston U. sophomore Melinda Matyas (Budapest, Hungary/Eotvos Jozsef Gimnazium) earned the nod for Female Diver of the Week.
De Waal led the Retrievers to victory with two wins and a second-place finish. The sophomore won the 1,000-yard freestyle in a UMBC season-best time of 9:38.89. The time beat his previous season-best mark by over 10 seconds and is the ninth-fastest time in school history. He also touched first in the 500 free in 4:40.91, also a team season-best time and almost five seconds faster than his previous season-best mark. De Waal capped off the meet finishing second in the 200 fly in 1:53.35.
Eckhoff led the Retriever dive team, sweeping the diving events against Boston University. In the one-meter dive, the sophomore hit a season-best mark of 299.55 on his way to victory. In the three-meter dive, he took first place with a score of 284.77. This is the second time this season Eckhoff has earned Diver of the Week honors, the first of which came in the season’s opening week.
Sippel helped the Retriever women top Boston University in a closely contested meet on Saturday. The junior touched first in the 200-yard freestyle in a time of 1:54.03 and was part of the 400-yard free relay that clinched the victory over the Terriers in a time of 3:29.96. In addition, Sippel earned second place in the 500 free in a UMBC season-best time of 5:04.52.
Matyas had a strong meet despite the loss at UMBC. The sophomore swept the one-meter and three-meter dives against the Retrievers, posting scores of 260.92 in the one-meter dive and 278.32 in the three meter dive. This is the third-straight weekly award for Matyas.
Binghamton University swimming and diving did not have a meet last week. The Bearcat men and women will next compete when they host Massachusetts November 5-6.
Boston University swimming and diving traveled to Baltimore, Md., on Saturday for a dual meet against conference rival UMBC. Both the Terrier men and women fell to the Retrievers, 178-115 in the men’s meet and 156-144 in the women’s meet. Senior Kyle Ernst (Seekonk, Mass./Seekonk) had a strong meet for the Terrier men, claiming first place in three races. Ernst finished first in the 100 breaststroke, touching in 58.50, 1.5 second ahead of his nearest competitor. He also won the 200 breaststroke, finishing in 2:09.10, and the 200 IM, pacing a podium sweep in the event for the Terriers with a time of 1:59.16. In the 200 IM, Ernst was followed by freshmen teammates Nik Astashinsky (Carmel, Ind./Carmel) and Wesley Pate (Duluth, Ga./Greater Atlanta Christian). Senior Tanner Knorr (San Diego, Calif./Valhalla) led the Boston U. divers, placing second in the one- and three-meter dives, posting scores of 234.97 and 263.77 in the events, respectively. The women’s team was led by junior Amanda Schmitz (Pleasanton, Calif./Foothill), who won the 200 fly with a time of 2:04.20, the 500 freestyle in 5:03.84 and the 200 individual medley with a time of 2:08.12. In the diving events, sophomore Melinda Matyas (Budapest, Hungary/Eotvos Jozsef Gimnazium) again led the charge for the Terriers. Matyas scored 260.92 in the one-meter dive and 278.32 in the three-meter dive on her way to winning both events. The Terrier men and women return to the pool on November 7 at Colgate.
University of Maine swimming and diving traveled to Rhode Island for a pair of weekend meets. The Black Bears faced Bryant on Friday and Rhode Island on Saturday. Both the men and the women went 1-1 on the trip. The men lost to Bryant, 146-116, but topped Rhode Island, 172-110. The women’s team beat Bryant, 154-108, and fell to Rhode Island, 180-127. The men were led by junior Brian Landry (Yorktown, Va./Hampton Roads Academy) who took the 100- and 200-yard breaststroke events against both Bryant and Rhode Island. Landry beat the Bulldogs with a time of 1:02.19 in the 100 and a 2:16.03 time in the 200. He slowed down against the Rams, swimming 1:03.60 and 2:16.52, respectively, but still took first in both races. The women were paced by sophomore Jennifer Trodden (Reading, Mass./Reading Memorial), who won the 200 individual medley and the 200 breaststroke against Bryant, posting times of 2:13.91 and 2:29.22, respectively. She also finished second in the 100-yard breaststroke against the Bulldogs and third in the 200-yard breaststroke at Rhode Island. Freshman diver Kara Capossela (Greenwich, Conn./ Greenwich) also had a successful weekend, winning the one- and three-meter dives against Rhode Island. Both Maine teams next compete on November 6 when they welcome Stony Brook to Orono, Maine.
UMBC swimming and diving had a successful weekend with both the men’s and women’s teams grabbing victories over America East foe Boston University on Saturday. The men won, 178-115, while the women pulled out a 156-144 victory. Seniors Eric Jones (Gambrills, Md./Arundel) and Brad Reitz (Ellicott City, Md./Howard) and sophomore transfer Pierre De Waal (Pretoria, South Africa/Tuks Sport/Cleveland State) each won two individual events. Jones won the 100 (47.73) and 200 free (1:43.46), Reitz swept the 100 (51.18) and 200 fly (1:53.27), while De Waal won the distance events, taking the 500 free in 4:40.91 and the 1,000 free in 9:38.89, both UMBC season-best times. Sophomore Andrew Eckhoff (Chelmsford, Mass./Chelmsford) swept the men’s diving events, winning the one-meter with a score of 299.55 and the three-meter with a score of 284.77. The women’s meet came down to the final relay with the 400-yard freestyle relay of junior Ashley Miller (New Smyrna Beach, Fla./New Smyrna Beach), freshman Erika Ronning (Western Springs, Ill./Lyons Township) and juniors Ashley Sippel (Rockville, Md./Thomas Wootton) and Abbey McKenney (Wilmington, Del./Brandywine) clinching the victory in 3:29.96. The 200-yard medley relay of junior Kathryn Moorby (Cape May, N.J./Lower Cape May Regional), freshman Talor Tadena (Orangevale, Calif./Bella Vista), senior Sarah Ryan (Rockville Centre, N.Y./Oceanside) and Miller broke the UMBC Natatorium record in a time of 1:46.09, over six-tenths of a second faster than the pool record the team set two weeks ago. The women’s side had six individual winners who swam UMBC season-best times, including senior Rebecca Godwin (Catonsville, Md./Notre Dame Prep) winning the 1,000 free in 10:14.86 and junior Laura Tilman (Miami, Fla./Ransom Everglades) taking the 200 back in 2:08.78. Ryan claimed the 100 fly in 57.29, McKenney won the 100 free in 52.36, Sippel took the 200 free in 1:54.03 and Moorby claimed the 100 back in 59.30. The Retrievers return to action November 13 for a tri-meet against Maryland and Towson in College Park, Md.
University of New Hampshire swimming and diving did not have a meet last week. The Wildcat women will return to the pool on November 6 for a dual meet at Central Connecticut State.
Stony Brook University swimming and diving hosted Massachusetts in its home opener. The men’s team dropped its meet, 184-114, while the women fell, 159-141. In the men’s meet, the Seawolves were led by junior Sean Conway (Oakdale, N.Y./Connetquot) and senior Lukasz Ochmanski (Lodz, Poland/Kosciuszko Memorial) who each won two events. Conway paced the field in the 50 and 100 freestyle events, posting times of 21.86 and 47.97, respectively. Ochmanski posted season-best times of 54.17 in the 100 fly and 1:45.21 in the 200 freestyle. The women’s team was led by freshman Renee Deschenes (Winnipeg, Manitoba/College Louis-Riel), who claimed three victories for the Seawolves. Deschenes took the 100 backstroke in a time of 57.91 as well as winning the 200 back in a time of 2:07.56 and the 200 fly in 2:12.33 individually. She also led off the first-place 200-yard medley relay team. The Seawolves head to Orono, Maine on Saturday for a dual meet against the Black Bears.
University of Vermont swimming and diving did not have a meet last week. The Catamounts return to action on November 13 for a meet against Keene State and America East rival Maine.