EWING, N.J. -- TCNJ concluded the final dual meet of the 2013-14 season with a splash as they clinched the New Jersey Athletic Championship by defeating Rowan 171- 121.
It marked the sixth consecutive NJAC title for the Lions as they finished the dual meet season with 6-2 overall record and a perfect 4-0 in the conference. Rowan suffered its first defeat and dropped to 9-1, 2-1 in the NJAC..
Prior to the events, TCNJ's swimming and diving program recognized a total of 10 outstanding senior student-athletes for their accomplishments and commitment to the Lions' program.
TCNJ swept all 12 individual events and both relay races. Sophomore, James Shangle had an incredible performance winning three individual events and a relay race. Shangle took top honors in the 200-yard medley relay (1:24:55), 100-yard breaststroke (57.75), and 200-yard breaststroke (2:10:27), and men 200 yard-IM (1:58:36).
The Lions had a strong start, winning the 200-medley relay event. Aleksander Burzynski, sophomore James Shangle, sophomore Joseph Dunn and senior Philip Hawley placed first with a winning time of 1:34.55. Dunn also won the 100-butterfly, touching the wall at 51.88.
In the 20-free event, TCNJ locked in the top four spots with freshman Andrew Nesbitt at number two and Stephen Tarnowski in first with a time of 1:41:20. Tarnowski also took top honors in the individual 200-backstroke at 1:55:54.
Senior William Kasper sprinted a to first-place finish in his final meet in TCNJ's Aquatic Center. He won the 50-free event with a time of 21.27.
No. 3 Emory at Alabama
TUSCALOOSA, Ala. -- Despite a number of strong performances on Saturday afternoon, Emory were each defeated by Alabama at the Don Gambril Olympic PooL.
Emory men dropped a 196-92 decision to Alabama.
Emory swimmers combined to finish first in four events and record 10 NCAA 'B' cut times during the meet. The lone first-place finish from the Emory men came from sophomore Jared Scheuer, who won the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 1:54.39. Sophomore Andrew Wilson added a 'B' cut time in the 100-yard breaststroke with a mark of 57.07 seconds, while the 400-yard medley relay team of senior Ross Spock, Wilson, junior Hayden Baker and senior Jake Stephens finished second in the event with a provisional qualifying time of 3:20.44.
No. 5 MIT at Amherst
CAMBRIDGE, Mass. -- On senior day and at its final home meet of the 2013-14 season, MIT defeated Amherst by a score of 185-115. This is the third year in a row that the Engineers have come out on top in a meet against the Lord Jeffs. Six different MIT swimmers picked up wins throughout the day, with sophomore Thomas Norris leading the way with his three individual victories.
Norris touched first in the 1000-yard freestyle with a 9:48.83, swimming almost the same exact time that earned him a win against Tufts last weekend. Freshman John Matthews came in third in 9:57.08. Just three events later, Norris went on to win the 200-yard butterfly with a time of 1:53.61, out-touching Jeff Anderson of Amherst by just over a tenth of a second, and then, later on in the day, also won the 500-yard freestyle with a time of 4:48.34, finishing just two-tenths of a second ahead of Amherst's Parker Moody.
No. 6 Williams at Middlebury
WILLIAMSTOWN, Mass. -- After a rousing win over MIT on Friday night, Steve Kuster's Ephmen closed out the weekend doubleheader with a second win versus Middlebury on Saturday. The men won the meet in convincing fashion, capturing all but three events en route to a 197-101 victory.
The Eph quartet of Nathaniel Boley, Tim Lattimer, Ben Lin, and rookie Grant Johnson beat their Panther opponents by nearly six seconds to win the 400-yard medley relay.
In the 200-yard freestyle, junior Christian Gronbeck captured a key first place in 1:45.32, with classmates Alex Nanda and Chris Weihs rounding out the sweep at 1:45.72 and 1:46.05, respectively. Continuing the momentum, Lin dropped a blistering 23.44 in the 50-yard backstroke to give yet another event to the Ephs.
No. 9 NYU at Vassar
POUGHKEEPSIE, N.Y. -- NYU defeated host Vassar (186-106) on Saturday.
Junior Jerry Crowley won the 1,000-yard freestyle (10:37.25) and the 200-yard individual medley (2:04.54). Crowley has been named University Athletic Association (UAA) Athlete of the Week twice this season.
No. 10 St. Olaf at Carleton
NORTHFIELD, Minn. -- Michael Gratz and Nick Wilkerson set Thorpe Pool records as visiting St. Olaf defeated Carleton 196-95 on Saturday afternoon.
Gratz set the pool mark in the 100 free with his victory in a time of 46.46. Wilkerson set the Thorpe Pool record in the 200 breast with his 2:08.50.
St. Olaf won 15 of the 16 events in the meet.
