“Historic Splash: Men’s Swimming and Diving Triumphs at Arizona as Schmitt Shatters 200 Fly Record!”

TUCSON, Ariz. – Harvard Men’s Swimming and Diving clinched a 178-122 away victory at Arizona on Friday. This success at Hillenbrand Aquatic Center improved the Crimson’s record to 4-0 for the season, whereas the Wildcats, who were receiving votes in the recent CSCAA Top 25 Poll, fell to 2-4.

Key Highlights

• On an afternoon where Harvard triumphed in 10 events, none stood out more than David Schmitt’s achievement in the 200 butterfly. The sophomore shattered his own school record of 1:42.17, finishing with a victorious time of 1:41.25, which was over two seconds quicker than his previous season record (1:43.72). Schmitt also won the 100 fly, clocking in at 45.99, elevating from sixth to third all-time at Harvard.
• Anthony Rincon had a delightful afternoon in the warm climate, swimming the first leg of the winning 200 medley relay (season-best 1:25.25) before securing victories in the 100 back (season-best 46.38) and 200 back (1:41.52). The senior’s 100-back performance ranks third in Harvard history.
• Joshua Chen participated as the second leg of the victorious 200 medley relay and achieved triumph in two additional events as the day proceeded. The first-year swam into the Crimson’s all-time 100-breast records, marking the fourth-fastest time in school history at 53.62. In the 200 breast, Chen climbed from 10^th to seventh in Harvard’s records with a time of 1:56.99. Both of his times were the best among his competitors today.
• Sophomore Sonny Wang claimed victory in the 50 free, finishing in 19.64 seconds. He was the sole competitor to break the 20-second barrier on the day, nearly matching his personal best of 19.61.
• Senior Adam Wesson took first place in the 1-meter diving competition with a score of 347.70. He subsequently finished second in the three-meter event (367.73).
• First-year Adriano Arioti excelled in the 200 individual medley, achieving a time of 1:47.89. He spearheaded a Crimson sweep of the top-three finishes, as peers Eric Lee (1:48.86) and Richard Poplawski III (season-best 1:48.93) placed second and third, respectively.
• With the victory against Arizona, Harvard’s all-time record against current members of the Big 12 Conference now stands at 6-0 (1-0 vs. Arizona, 2-0 vs. Arizona State, 1-0 vs. BYU, 1-0 vs. Kansas, 1-0 vs. Utah).

Next Up

The Crimson resumes competition on Friday, Jan. 17, as it heads to Providence, Rhode Island, to compete against Brown at noon ET.