MIDDLEBURY, VT - The freshmen on the 2017-18 Tufts University women's swimming & diving team wrapped up a strong opening weekend by winning seven races in the Jumbos' 155-134 NESCAC victory at Middlebury College on Sunday.
In their season debuts on Saturday, Tufts freshmen were first in eight events as the Jumbos opened a new year with a victory over Coast Guard at Hamilton Pool. Today, Sook-Hee Evans, Katherine Brown and Sasha Fong all won a pair of races helping the Tufts first-years total 15 victories in their first two meets.
After the Jumbos dropped the opening event (200 medley relay) of today's meet, Evans earned a win in the 1,000 freestyle with a 10:49.01 time. Jumbos finished in the top three spots for the event. Evans would later sweep the distance freestyle events with a 5:16.92 for first in the 500. Brown posted her first collegiate victory in the 50 breaststroke (27.60) and later added her second in the 100 breaststroke (1:09.33). Fong's wins came in the butterflies, with her 58.87 topping the 100 and a 26.67 taking the 50.
The other freshman win came from Abby Claus, who had a 1:00.14 in the 100 backstroke where she led a group of the top four finishers for Tufts. With the Jumbos' victory firmly in place late in the meet, Claus also had the fastest time of 2:13.15 in the 200 individual medley which was competed as an exhibition. Both diving events were scored as exhibitions as well. Tufts freshman Amber Chong earned the top score in the one-meter event with 253.20 points.
Junior Colleen Doolan also finished off a strong weekend with a good meet at Middlebury. Along with a win in the 200 freestyle (1:58.54) early, she also scored second-place points twice in the 50 free (25.47) and the 100 free (54.45). That gave her 17 points in the three freestyle events for the meet. Sophomore Hannah Truslow added a pair of runner-up performances to the Jumbo score in the 200 free (2:00.02) and the 500 free (5:22.92).
Sophomore Frances VanderMeer had two of Middlebury's three victories in the meet. She won the 50 backstroke in 27.60 seconds and touched first in the 100 freestyle at 53.79 seconds. The Panthers also had the best times in the two relays.
Head coach Adam Hoyt's Jumbos (2-0) will return to action at the MIT Invitational starting on December 1. Middlebury (0-2) welcomes Amherst on December 2.
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