In just their third meet of the season, they defeated the Panthers in every single swimming event for a solid 136-95 win. "Going into this weekend's meet against Middlebury we wanted to make a statement that last year's losses to them in both the dual meet and at NESCAC's were flukes," said senior tri-captain Tommy Gonnella. "Our goal was to win big and swim our best meet so far this fall."
"We knew going into the meet that it was going to be a great opportunity to gauge how well the team will swim this year," added senior tri-captain Rick Estacio.
The team of John Ancona '07, Estacio, CJ Holmes '09 and Joe Scala '09 started Amherst off strong with a win in the 400-yard medley relay. Distance swimmers Christian Witzke '09 and senior tri-captain Adam Lewkowitz followed with a one-two finish in the 1,000-yard freestyle. Witzke also won the 500-yard freestyle, in which he was followed by Ethan Treat '07 and first-year Dan McCune in second and third, respectively.
"Witzke is going to be one of the fastest middle-distance and distance freestylers in the conference," said senior tri-captain Adam Lewkowitz. "His impressive training ethic will help push me back up to the top of the rankings alongside him, as well as pushing other distance swimmers higher."
Treat also took first-place finishes in both the 200-yard individual medley and the 200-yard butterfly. He edged out Holmes by a mere 0.19 second in the butterfly event, while Lewkowitz followed him for a one-two-three finish. In the individual medley race, Estacio also took third and Gonnella took fourth.
First-year Chris Resler has proven himself a valuable addition to the team by again dominating his events. A quick, short-distance freestyler, Resler won both the 50- and 100-yard freestyle sprints. Adam Kaplan '07 took third in the 50-yard event, while Andrew Maslan '08 took second in the 100-yard race.
Maslan also registered a win for the Jeffs in the 200-yard freestyle, just ahead of junior Ed Hagerty, who finished second, and Mike Waskom '09 who took fourth.
"I'd like to congratulate both Holmes and Treat, who have a good chance of breaking the pool record in the 200-yard butterfly at Williams," said Estacio.
"Resler and Maslan both had outstanding swims on Saturday. Their performances far exceeded my expectations and leave me optimistic about the rest of the season."
"Having a fast sprinter is always important, and Resler's youth and enthusiasm will help buoy the team in future meets," added Lewkowitz.
Amherst made a solid showing in the 200-yard backstroke event; Estacio registered a fast first-place time, while Hagerty took third and first-year Josiah Bethards finished fourth.
In the 200-yard breaststroke, John Ancona '07 edged out Middlebury's top breaststroker by less than three-tenths of a second for another Amherst win. Ancona was followed by teammates Derek Prill '08 and Alec Goldfield '09 in fourth and sixth place, respectively.
Sophomore divers Adam Bookman and Connor Boyd stepped up their competition against the Panthers' tough diving squad. In the three-meter event, Boyd took second with a score of 214.13. Boyd again took second place on the one-meter board. Bookman came in third in both diving events.
Despite the Panther's tough diving competition, the Jeffs were no match for their opponents. Amherst finished the meet with a nearly four-second victory in the 400-yard freestyle relay,
propelled by powerhouse underclassmen Maslan, Resler, Scala and Witzke. The squad of Hagerty, Holmes, Kaplan and Waskom finished close behind Middlebury's top time for a third-place finish.
With a 3-0 start so far this season, the Jeffs have already proven their strength. "I really think that this team, more than any of my years here, is more dependent on depth than individual standouts," said Lewkowitz. "We no longer need certain individuals to win certain events."
"I attribute our success so far this season to great swims by almost every team member," said Estacio. "The [first-years] are living up to their potential and several upperclassmen are swimming faster than ever ... Judging by our performances, especially this weekend. I'm convinced that if we continue to work hard, we have the talent to have a historic season."
The Jeffs face a full month of training until their biggest meet of the season. In a pre-Interterm match-up, they will host Little Three rival and 2004 NESCAC Champions Williams College on Jan. 7 at 4 p.m. at Pratt Pool.
NESCAC Notes
Williams participated in the Nutmeg Invitational at Yale University against several top Div. I teams, including Yale University, Boston College and Fordham University. Though no final team scores were kept, Div. III Williams finished strong in several individual and relay events. Tufts University beat Bowdoin College 166-104, and Trinity College fell to Bates College in dual meet competition. Several NESCAC teams also participated in invitational meets against various New England teams. Colby and Connecticut Colleges both participated in the three-day Camel Invitational against three other area teams; the Mules took fourth, while the Camels finished fifth.