Princeton University Athletics
Players Mentioned
Ivy Champ Princeton Claims First All-America Since 2012 In 200 Free Relay
March 25, 2016 | Men's Swimming and Diving
PRINCETON ALL-AMERICAS
The quartet of En-Wei Hu-Van Wright, Sandy Bole, Julian Mackrel and Alex Lewis made Princeton history in Atlanta Thursday during Day 2 of the NCAA Men's Swimming and Diving Championships. After qualifying for the consolation final during the preliminary session, the Tigers jumped up three spots to finish 13th in a time of 1:18.02 and earn All-America Honorable Mention.
It completed a memorable first day for Princeton at the NCAA Championships, though there is plenty of competition left to come over the weekend. Hu-Van Wright will join teammates Teo D'Alessandro and Corey Okubo in individual competition Friday, while the 400 free relay will wait until Saturday to try for a second All-America performance.
Princeton currently stands 25th overall at the NCAA Championships.
After finishing 16th in preliminaries — the last spot available to clinch an All-America honor — in a time of 1:18.25, the Tigers cut nearly a quarter second off that time to move up to 13th. Hu-Van Wright, the Ivy League runner-up in the 50 free, opened in a split of 19.71, and senior Sandy Bole followed in 19.26. Junior Julian Mackrel posted an impressive 19.14, more than a half-second better than his Ivies split, while sophomore Alex Lewis rounded it off in 19.67.
This is Princeton's first All-America relay since 2012, when Jon Christensen, Kaspar Raigla, Michael Strand and Harrison Wagner earned Honorable Mention in the 200 medley relay. The group is only the fourth All-America 200 free relay in the last 20 years, and the first since 2009 (Mike Carter, Colin Cordes, Jon Hartmann and Doug Lennox).
D'Alessandro posted a Top-30 finish in his first NCAA Championships individual event. The three-time reigning Ivy League champion in the 200 IM finished in 1:45.04, 28th-best in the field, while Okubo finished in 1:47.69, the 43rd-best time.
Hu-Van Wright took 35th in the 50 free in a time of 19.80.
On Friday, Hu-Van Wright will compete in the 100 back, one of two events he won an Ivy League championship in last month. Okubo will swim the 400 IM, where he has finished first (2015) and second (2016) at Ivies, while D'Alessandro will swim the 200 free.