Beyond Williams, Much Jockeying for Position After D1 of Men’s NESCACs

New England Small College Athletic Conference –Men

• Dates: Friday, February 19 – Sunday, February 21; prelims 10 AM, finals 6 PM (5:30 on Sunday)
• Location: Williamstown, MA (Eastern Time)
• Defending Champions: Williams (13x) (results)
• Live Results: Available
• Live Video: Available
• Championship Central

Day One Full Results

After three straight years of Williams, Amherst, Connecticut College and Tufts at the top of the NESCAC Championships standings, 2016 could be the year that shakes things up. The Ephs leads the pack after Day 1 yet again, but this time Connecticut College is making a move on Amherst, with a 44.5-point lead. Bates and Middlebury are in a battle for fifth, separated by only 12 points, and Wesleyan, Hamilton, Colby and Trinity have all had strong performances and are vying for position.

200 Yard Freestyle Relay

1. Williams College 1:21.56
2. Connecticut College 1:23.25
3. Bates College 1:23.56

Williams opened the Championships with a meet and pool record in the 200 free relay with Jamie Finnegan (21.01), Curtis Maher (20.21), Grant Johnson (20.14), and Alex McCarter (20.20) combining for 1:21.56. Connecticut’s Michael Fothergill split a 19.96 on the end of their relay to push the Camels (1:23.25) into second place ahead of Bates (1:23.56) and Tufty (1:23.72).

50 Yard Breaststroke

1. Jake Tamposi, Williams – 25.17
2. Elijah Spiro, Amherst – 25.38
3. Josh Chen, Amherst – 25.65

After breaking the NESCAC, meet, and pool records with his prelims swim of 24.88, Williams’ Jake Tamposi earned the championship crown with 25.17. It was the senior’s fourth win in as many years. He lowered his own conference and meet records to 24.88 after having set them, as well as the pool record, last year with 25.42. Amherst teammates Elijah Spiro and Josh Chen took second and third, respectively.

50 Yard Butterfly

1. Timothy Kostolansky, Williams – 21.93
2. Reed Patterson, Amherst – 22.42
3. Kingsley Bowen, Tufts – 22.58

Williams sophomore Timothy Kostolansky downed the conference, meet, and pool records in prelims with a solid 21.72, a half-second ahead of his closest competitor. He won the final with 21.93, still a half-body length ahead of Reed Patterson of Amherst (22.42), who improved on his fourth-place finish of 2015 with a silver medal this time around. Tufts freshman Kingsley Bowen touched out Amherst’s Sam Spurrell, 22:58 to 22:59, for third.

500 Yard Freestyle

1. Connor Haley, Amherst – 4:33.75
2. Alan Pite, Connecticut – 4:34.46
3. Stephen Skaperdas, Connecticut – 4:36.38

After three straight years of domination in this event by now-graduated Thad Ricotta of Williams, there was a new face at the top of the podium. Amherst junior Connor Haley moved from fifth in 2014 to third in 2015 to first in 2016, clocking in with a time of 4:33.75. Haley led wire to wire in the final, having qualified sixth out of prelims. Connecticut’s Alan Pite (4:34.46) and Stephen Skaperdas (4:36.38) took second and third.

50 Yard Backstroke

1. Benjamin Lin, Williams – 22.33
2. Michael Fothergill, Connecticut – 22.84
3. Nick Celestin, Trinity – 22.88

Williams junior Benjamin Lin won his third straight title in the 50 back by a half-body length, coming to the wall in 22.33. Lin lowered his own NESCAC and meet records, as well as the pool record, with a huge 21.84 in prelims. Connecticut’s Fothergill placed second in 22.84, a mere 4/100 ahead of Trinity senior Nick Celestin (22.88).

200 Yard Individual Medley

1. Timothy Kostolansky, Williams – 1:50.99
2. Karl Sarier, Bowdoin – 1:51.32
3. George Tilneac, Connecticut – 1:51.39

Kostolansky earned his second championship title of the night for the Ephs with a 1:50.99 in the 200 IM. He finished two spots higher and .62 faster than he had been a year ago. Bowdoin freshman Karl Sarier thrilled the crowd with a come-from-behind win for the second position, out-touching Connecticut sophomore George Tilneac, 1:51.32 to 1:51.39.

50 Yard Freestyle

1. Theodore Pender, Bates – 20.73
2. Alex McCarter, Williams – 20.95
3. Michael Fothergill, Connecticut – 20.95

Bates’ Theodore Pender got to the wall first in an extremely tight 50 free final in 20.73. The sophomore, who finished tenth overall last year, went a sub-21 for the first time in prelims, qualifying fourth. He dropped another 20/100 to get the win ahead of both Alex McCarter of Williams and Connecticut’s Fothergill, both of whom came to the wall in 20.95 to tie for second.

1-Meter Diving

1. Asher Lichtig, Amherst – 511.50
2. Matthew Rohrer, Tufts – 505.55
3. Brandon Pearson, Wesleyan – 501.75

Amherst senior Asher Lichtig improved on his 2015 bronze medal finish with a huge performance in finals to earn the 2016 crown in one-meter diving, scoring 511.50 points. Defending champion Matthew Rohrer of Tufts finished second with 505.55 points, while Brandon Pearson of Wesleyan rounded out the podium.

400 Yard Medley Relay

1. Williams College 3:17.31
2. Amherst College 3:21.29
3. Connecticut College 3:21.41

Williams took down the pool record in the final event of the evening, as Lin (48.09), Tamposi (54.29), Kostolansky (49.58), and Maher (45.35) combined for 3:17.31 in the 400 medley relay.

Amherst got the touch in a four-way battle for second, clocking a 3:21.29. Connecticut went 3:21.41 for third, ahead of Bates (3:21.50) and Tufts (3:21.94).

Men’s Standings

1. Williams College 657.5
2. Connecticut College 545.5
3. Amherst College 501
4. Tufts University 491
5. Bates College 352.5
6. Middlebury 340.5
7. Bowdoin College 302.5
8. Wesleyan University 183
9. Hamilton College 174
10. Colby College 161.5
11. Trinity College 160