Harvard Takes the Plunge: Men’s Swim & Dive Competes at Hillenbrand Arena!

TUCSON, ARIZ. — The Arizona Men’s Swimming and Diving squad will compete against Harvard University on Friday, Jan. 10 at Hillenbrand Aquatics Center, marking the team’s inaugural meet of 2025. 

The Wildcats are coming off a thrilling victory over BYU in late December. During this competition, the Arizona men’s swimming team secured first place in each event. The triumph against BYU was accentuated by remarkable displays from the entire team.

Ralph Daleiden and Gage DuBois received the Big 12 Swimmer of the Week and Big 12 Diver of the Week honors, respectively, for their outstanding performances against the Cougars. 

DuBois, who has now achieved this conference accolade three times this season, dominated the men’s diving events versus BYU, clinching first place in both the Men’s 3m and Platform events, thereby securing 18 points for the Wildcats in their 240-107 win over the Cougars.

Daleiden, the first Wildcat to earn the Big 12 Swimmer of the Week title, has showcased a remarkable junior year and overall career at Arizona. This season, the Olympian ranks in the top-20 nationwide three times: 200 Free (1:32.17-No. 15), 400 Free Relay (2:48.65-No. 9), and 800 Free Relay (6:13.31-No. 5).

Other Arizona male swimmers within the top 20 include:

• Tomas Lukminas (200 Free, 1:32.22, No. 16), 

• Daniel Young (50 BR, 24.10, No. 3),

•  Tavner Wisdom (50 BR, 24.99, No. 11)

• Haakon Naughton (50 Fly, 21.55, No. 14) (100 Fly, 45.27, No. 17)(200 Fly, 1:40.55, No. 8)

• Jadan Nabor (100 IM, 49.24, No. 8)

The Crimson remain undefeated in dual meets this season, having triumphed over Cornell, Dartmouth, and Columbia. 

Harvard athletes to keep an eye on:

Harvard’s Shane Washart is a formidable distance swimmer; at the Minnesota Invitational in early December, Washart completed the 1650 Free with a time of 15:27.96, which is nine seconds slower than the Wildcats’ top time this season from Mason Nyboer (15.18.82). 

During the same Minnesota meet, Anthony Rincon secured an NCAA B-Cut time in the 200 Back (1:41.37). Will Meyers is the only Arizona swimmer who has achieved a quicker time in this event, finishing with 1:41.15 at the Wolfpack Elite Invitational. Rincon also commands Harvard’s top time in the 100 Back this season (46.58), placing him just behind Meyers (46.50). 

Harvard’s Sonny Wang holds several leading times for the Crimson, securing the No. 1 positions in the 50 Free (19.80), 100 Free (43.64), and the No. 2 position in the 100 Fly (46.81). 

Harvard also possesses a strong Individual Medley team. In the 200 IM, Adriano Arioti leads with the top time for the Crimson (1:46.94), which is .94 seconds behind Haakon Naughton’s best time for the Wildcats (1:46.00). Eric Lee and Richard Poplawski of Harvard both recorded times in the 1:48.00-1:49.00 range. For the 400 IM, both Poplawski and Lee achieved times under 3:52.00, while Arizona’s fastest time this season comes from Bryan Wong (3:52.72).