Men's Swimming & Diving Ready for NESCAC Championships

MEDFORD, MA (February 15, 2023) – The Tufts University men's swimming & diving team heads to Wesleyan University for the 2023 NESCAC Championships, which start Thursday and run through Sunday.

Championship Details:
2023 NESCAC Men's Swimming & Diving Championships
Dates: Thursday, February 16 through Sunday, February 19
Location: Middletown, CT – Webster Family Natatorium (Directions)
Coverage: SCHEDULE – PSYCH SHEET – LIVE RESULTS – LIVE VIDEO

The Jumbos have finished at least second at the last four conference meets, including winning their first-ever conference crown in 2018. They will be looking for a similar performance this week.

"All through this season we've received contributions from men in each and every class year," said head coach Adam Hoyt. "This weekend's championship will be a true team effort and we're excited to see how we perform against the best in our conference.  The team has consistently put in great preparation from the start to the finish of the season and I believe it will pay off with some great performances this coming weekend. We have a fun group of guys who care deeply for each other and those relationships should help carry us through a championship weekend."

The Jumbos have the top time among conference teams in 12 events this year, including four of the five relays. Sophomore Eric Lundgren is the #1 swimmer in all three backstroke events, while classmate Ethan Schreier enters the meet as the #1 seed in the 200 freestyle and 200 butterfly.

Tufts will open the meet with the 800 freestyle relay on Thursday, an event they have the #1 and #3 times in NESCAC for this season. The top mark of 6:39.22 was registered by Schreier, first-year Armaan Sikka, Eli Houlton and Lundgren. That's the only event on Thursday, then full-day preliminaries and finals begin on Friday.

Tufts also has the top mark in both medley relays. Their 200 foursome of Lundgren, Emmett Adams, Schreier and LaBarge swam 1:29.33 this season. The 400 group of Lundgren, Darrien Johnsen, Schreier and LaBarge has a 3:17.35 best time. The Jumbos are also the #1 seed in the 400 freestyle relay, which will close the meet on Sunday. Their time of 3:00.62 was submitted by Sikka, Lundgren, Schreier and LaBarge. Tufts 200 and 400 freestyle relays that won NESCAC titles in 2020 included LaBarge.

Lundgren swam two school records in the backstrokes this season. His 48.05 is the top NESCAC time in the 100, as is his 1:45.57 in the 200. The defending conference champion in the 200, Lundgren is also the top seed in the 50 back with a time of 22.58 seconds. Look for first-year Jack Madden to score well here, with the #3 mark in the 100 (49.85) and #5 in the 200 (1:51.17). Vedant Bapna also has top-eight marks in all three backstroke events.

The school-record holder in the 100 and 200 butterflies, Schreier's 1:47.16 school record in the 200 this season is the #1 seed this weekend. Sikka's 48.47 is the top mark in the 100 fly. Schreier's 49.12 is third in the 100 fly, while Sikka also swam 22.45 in the 50 fly for Tufts' best time in that event. Tim Chou could final in both the 100 and 200, and has the meet's #3 mark in the 200 (1:52.01).

The Jumbo freestyle group is led by LaBarge, who has the top time in the league for the 100 free (44.51) and is seeded #2 for the 50 (20.23). Schreier swam NESCAC's top 200 free this season, a 1:39.37 at the MIT Invitational, and can stretch out to the 500 where he has the #4 time (4:36.32). Sikka, with the second-best 100 free mark (45.18), can score big in the sprints. The distance group is led by Evan Szablewski, with Houlton and first-years Louis Demetriades and Nate Pfeffer also figuring into the mix.

Adams was the league's fastest in the 50 breaststroke for the regular-season at 25.72 seconds. The Jumbos have great depth here, with Luke Isayiw, Willie Xu, Charlie Duffy, Johnsen, Bora Calis and first-year Connor Townson all posting top-eight times in the breaststroke events. Duffy in the 100 (56.31) and Calis in the 200 (2:03.20) were just shy of school records.

Schreier (1:53.06) and Duffy (1:53.38) own the top 200 IM times for the Jumbos. Four Jumbos are top-eight in the 400 IM, led by Townson (4:03.43), Brian Uribe (4:06.55), Calis (4:07.27) and Pfeffer (4:08.67).

Zach Lawrence was third in three-meter diving at the NESCAC meet a year ago. He's joined at the Championships this year by younger brother Jeremy Lawrence and Cameron Yuen.

Williams College, who outside of Tufts' title in 2018 has won 18 of the last 19 conference crowns, stands as the team to beat. Colby, Bates, Connecticut College and Amherst join Tufts and Williams as top 25 teams in the College Swimming Coaches Association of America poll, in what has been a strong NESCAC season and should make for great competition this weekend.