NORTON - Junior tri-captains Cam Simko and Michael Winget along with classmate Anthony DeBenedetto and freshman Morgan Ciliv all won two races as the Tufts men's swimming & diving team cruised to a 177-107 victory at Wheaton College today.
Head coach Adam Hoyt's team won 10 events and had the fastest time or score in 14 of 16. Both diving events and three others were competed as exhibitions by Tufts with their lead at a comfortable margin.
The Jumbo juniors showed great versatility in their victories. DeBenedetto swam to a 17:14.77 victory in the 1,650 freestyle where he was the first of Tufts' top four finishers. He lated timed 53.86 seconds to take the 100 backstroke. Winget's victories came in the 50 freestyle (22.71) and the 500 freestyle (4:57.84). The Jumbos also had the first four finishers in the 500 free. Simko swam 53.87 to win the 100 butterfly and then had a 49.17 for first in the 100 freestyle.
Ciliv swept the breaststrokes. His 1:00.78 won the 100 after his winning time in the 50 had been 28.08 seconds. Seconds in both events went to Jumbo sophomores Michael Lordi in the 100 (1:04 flat) and Jasper Du in the 200 (28.36).
Winget and Ciliv had been part of the Jumbo 200 medley relay that opened the meet with a win. They were the first two, respectively, followed by sophomore William Metcalfe and freshman Panos Skoufalos. The foursome put together a 1:37.61 time.
Freshman Zachary Wallace won a close race in the 200 freestyle. His 1:48.43 was 0.38 faster than Ross Johnston from Wheaton (1:48.81). The other Tufts winner was freshman James McElduff, whose 24.42 in the 50 butterfly edged Tufts senior co-captain Mike Napolitano (24.91) at the finish. Napolitano was also second behind Simko in the 100 fly, recording a 53.93 time.
All-American diver Matt Rohrer earned scores of 313.87 in three-meter and 297.52 in one-meter. Simko posted a third fastest time of the day with his 2:01.08 in the 200 individual medley, recorded as an exhibition in the team scoring.
The Jumbos will compete at the Middlebury Invitational next weekend (Jan. 30-31) prior to the start of the championship season.
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