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Navy Ends 92-Meet Home Streak With 167-133 Win In Men's Swimming
February 05, 2011 | Men's Swimming and Diving
When a team has won 92 straight home dual meets over the span of more than two decades, you figure somebody will have to swim awfully fast to come away with road victory number one.
On Saturday afternoon at DeNunzio Pool, the Navy Midshipmen swam awfully fast.
Navy improved to 11-1 overall and became the first team to win a dual meet in DeNunzio Pool since it opened in 1990 by defeating Princeton 167-133 on Senior Day. The Midshipmen proved their versatility, winning in sprints and distance events and sweeping both diving events, although Princeton (5-2) consistently cut into a deficit that started to grow by the third event.
Princeton had a strong start to the meet, going 1-2 in the 200 medley relay. The 'A' team of Kaspar Raigla, Jon Christensen, Michael Monovoukas and Matthew LaMonaca won the event in 1:29.52, while the 'B' team of Charlie Wang, K.J. Park, David Reid and Geoff Faux finished second in 1:30.79.
Navy began to assert itself immediately in the individual competition, going 1-2-3-4 in the 1000. Freshman Paul Nolle was Princeton's top finisher, taking fifth in 9:22.64, while junior Travis McNamara went sixth in 9:29.38.
Princeton junior Colin Cordes took second in the 200 free (1:38.26), while senior Colin Hanna – one of six honored during Senior Day at DeNunzio Pool -- edged a pair of Navy swimmers for third in 1:38.96.
A battle of youth took place in the 100 back, and Navy freshman Gage Trotter edged out Princeton sophomore Kaspar Raigla by less than half a second to win. Raigla ended in 49.73, while Tiger junior Robert Coe took third in 50.65.
Christensen earned Princeton's first individual win of the weekend, going 55.34 to take the 100 breast. Park added a third-place finish in 55.77; that result cut Princeton's deficit to only one point.
When the Tigers got close, Navy made sure to build its lead right back. The Midshipmen went 1-2-3-4 in the 200 fly, with Tiger senior Brett Lullo taking fifth in 1:50.68. The lead improved to 14 points, although it was cut in half one event later when LaMonaca (20.43) and Faux (20.44) went 1-2 in a thrilling 50 free.
The one-meter diving competition was won by talented Navy senior Olaf Olson, who scored 341.54 points. Princeton sophomore Stevie Vines, who placed second on both boards in the Ivy League Championships last season, placed second with 325.05 points.
Cordes and LaMonaca went 2-3 in the 100 free, falling to Navy senior Aaron Aiken (44.64). Cordes finished in 45.08, while LaMonaca was just behind him in 45.47.
A quartet of freshmen battled it out in the 200 back, with two in particular putting on a thrilling finish. Navy's Conor Campbell held off Princeton's Adam Lebovitz by .06 of a second to win in 1:48.58. Lebovitz (1:48.64) and Nicholas Beaulieu (1:49.89) took second and fourth, respectively.
Christensen and Navy freshman Luke Hoffer had a tight race in the 200 breast, which went to Hoffer in 1:59.20. Christensen, an All-Ivy honoree in both the 100 and 200 breast last season, took second in 1:59.32.
The 500 free event all but put the competition out of reach, as Navy finished first, third and fourth to build a 36-point lead. Hanna finished second in 4:30.71, more than seven seconds behind Navy's Mac Anthony (4:23.51).
Princeton did pick up a victory in the 100 fly, as junior Charlie Wang edged out both Navy's Steve Dukleth and Monovoukas to win in 49.19. Dukleth took second in 49.22, while Monovoukas finished third in 49.33. Junior Adlai Pappy gave the Tigers three in the top five with a fifth-place time of 49.82.
The final diving event would be on the three-meter board, and it provided the same result as the one-meter competition. Olson was too strong, winning with 399 points, while Vines placed second with 376.04 points.
The Tigers also went 1-2 in the 200 IM, with Christensen taking the victory in 1:49.64, and Hanna placing second in 1:50.48. It was the second consecutive multiple-win weekend for Christensen, who was impressive during Princeton's split of the H-Y-P weekend.
Navy finished the meet with a hard-fought win in the 400 free relay; its time of 2:59.95 was less than a quarter second faster than the Princeton quartet of Cordes, Monovoukas, Thomas Fellowes and LaMonaca, who finished in 3:00.19. Princeton also finished third in the event, as Andres Tung, Faux, Ian Rea and Will Lawley finished in 3:05.16.
Princeton returns to the pool Friday when it competes at Columbia in the 2011 regular season finale. The Tigers will compete for the Ivy League title March 3-5 at Harvard's Blodgett Pool.