The Kenyon men look well on pace to start another streak tonight; they take a 47.5 point lead into the final session, and even though Denison will outscore them in diving, everything else broke the way of the Lords on Saturday morning.
First, in the 100 free prelims, Ian Stewart-Bates and Curtis Ramsey went 1-2 in 43.56 and 43.83, respectively. MIT’s Wyatt Ubellacker is the 3rd seed in 43.92, and with the 50 free and 100 fly titles already under his belt could challenge those two, but Kenyon got four swimmers into this A-Final. That includes Ian Richardson in 44.30 and Austin Caldwell in 44.76.
Denison and MIT, the second and third place teams, have only one up and two down combined in that race. Kenyon’s swimmers went 1-2-4-7-9.
In the 200 back, Denison got a boost of energy when senior Quinn Bartlett broke the Meet Record in 1:45.65. The old record was set last year by Robert Barry, a fellow Denison alum; Grinnell’s Michael Brus was also under the old mark in 1:46.04 (though, swimming in the heat after Bartlett, never technically held the mark.
Bartlett was actually the 2011 champion in this event, before Barry won it last year, so he’s got every pedigree to hold on for that victory. His teammate Sean Chabot is the 5th seed in 1:48.04. They held serve, but Kenyon again moved way up with Jonathan Rooker, their only entry, sitting 6th in 1:48.38. They weren’t expected to have any scorer, so that’s a huge boost to the cause of the Lords, even though Denison will still easily outscore them in the event.
Paul Dyrkacz from Williams hasn’t been having a great meet so far, but he stepped up in the 200 breaststroke with a 1:58.83. That makes him the top seed by a second-and-a-half, despite this being the one of his three events (200 IM, 400 IM) where he comes in without an NCAA title.
Occidentals’ Steven van Deventer is 2nd in 2:00.20, and Kenyon’s Alexnader Beckwith is the 3rd seed in 2:00.24. For Beckwith, that’s a best time by four seconds, and another race where they weren’t expected to score but now have an A-Finalist.
Also lurking in this final is Stevens’ Simas Jarasunas in 2:00.60; he won the 100 breaststroke on Friday, and then declared himself to be a better 200 breaststroker.
MIT, with a 42.77 anchor from Ubellacker, took the top seed headed into finals of the 400 free relay in 2:57.39. Tonight, though, they will be challenged by Kenyon and their four A-finalists, who were on cruise-mode in a big way in this prelim for 2:59.65.
In the women’s meet, Emory also solidified their leading position. They got three into the A-final in the 100 free, though, as compared to Kenyon who excruciatingly had the 9th-and-10th seeds.
For Emory, Anna Dobben took the 2nd seed in 50.41, even though she was the one of the three who was borderline to final. She is seeded behind Redlands’ Chandra Lukes (50.30) headed into tonight’s final, which will have the top 8 seeds packed between 50.30 and 51.04.
In the women’s 200 back, Emory continued to overwhelm with numbers, getting two into the A-final. Meanwhile, this should be a monumental battle between Celia Oberholzer of Kenyon, record-setter in the 100, and Wheaton freshman Kirsten Nitz, who already has two wins on her tally for this meet. Nitz is an incredibly versatile swimmer, which on a four-day meet allowed her to cherry-pick the races where she had the best opportunity to win. The result was a bit of a weird schedule of the 50 free, the 100 fly, and the 200 back, but thus far she’s handled it extremely well.
Amy Spaay for Wisconsin-Whitewater takes the top seed into the 200 breast final, after winning the 100 last night, in 2:15.70. This win doesn’t look like it will be quite as easy as the shorter race, as Nazareth senior Carissa Risucci is the 2nd seed in 2:15.73.
The Emory women have the top seed in the 400 free relay in 3:22.01, with Kenyon in 5th in 3:25.75.
Top 3 teams after last night’s finals – Women
1. Emory 428.5
2. Kenyon 375
3. Denison 281
Up (A-Finals)/Downs (B-Finals) for individual events (no miles): Emory 8 up, 2 down; Kenyon 1 up, 3 down; Denison 0 up, 4 down
Top 3 teams after last night’s finals – Men
1. Kenyon 355.5
2. Denison 308
3. MIT 275
Up/Downs for individual events (no diving, no miles): Kenyon 6 up, 2 down; Denison 2 up, 6 down; MIT 4 up, 2 down
The women’s meet seems to be all-but-over, with diving completed and no room for Kenyon to make up any ground there. The men’s battle is leaning toward Kenyon, but with Denison expected to get quite a few diving points, as well as a team “win” in the mile, they’re still very much alive.