Eagles break a number of college information as Patriot League Swimming and Diving Championships conclude

The American University swimming and diving crew broke six college information and introduced house two silver medals, concluding the Patriot League Swimming and Diving Championships hosted by the United States Naval Academy. The competitors lasted from Feb. 18-21, with a number of Eagles having profitable races all through the whole thing of the meet. 

Day one noticed two college information damaged. The girls’s 800 freestyle relay, that includes senior Isabel McGovern, junior Fiona McMahon, freshman Lucy Penna and junior Kate Williams, surpassed their earlier college file in November with a 7:32.14 end. McGovern broke one other college file within the 200 freestyle through the leadoff portion, a file beforehand set by her earlier within the season with a 1:49.41 time. Out of the ten groups within the race, McGovern had the quickest leadoff leg. 

Other standout moments throughout day one have been the ladies’s 200 medley relay and the lads’s 800 freestyle relay. The girls’s crew, led by sophomore Piper Crosby, went on to develop into second all-time at American, ending with a 1:40.94 time, simply off the rostrum. The males’s crew was led by sophomore Ryan Pursley, who completed with a time of 1:31.72, rating eighth all-time on the University. In addition, freshman diver Alex Way had a stellar end, putting seventh within the males’s 3-meter board. 

Day two noticed one other college file damaged within the girls’s 400 medley relay, swam by Crosby, sophomore Marin Priddy, McGovern and sophomore Grace Gilbert. The crew positioned fifth and completed with a time of three:42.02, breaking the earlier college file set final November by almost 2 seconds. The duo of Crosby and Priddy went on to advance to the championship last the next day within the girls’s 50 freestyle, turning into the primary pair to take action in a number of many years. 

After outcomes have been cataloged, Crosby walked away together with her first silver medal of the meet within the 100 backstroke. 

“In the 100 backstroke, I felt more pressure because it’s my main event,” Crosby mentioned. “I knew I needed to be in a good headspace to swim well, so I tried to take the pressure off and just have fun with it.” 

Despite a stellar end, Crosby defined that she simply needed to concentrate on the duty at hand: “I wanted to focus on racing and being in the moment and touching the wall and seeing the time felt amazing,” Crosby mentioned. 

The last day of the meet solely noticed extra information damaged and medals gained. Again, it was Crosby who had a tremendous efficiency — this time within the 200 again with a 1:56.83 end. After the outcomes throughout the person occasions have been tallied, Crosby positioned seventh out of the 160 girls competing and smashed Eagles swimming legend Paris Wood’s high private file. In addition, Crosby earned her second silver medal and have become the one Eagle to have high 5 finishes previously two years in the identical occasions. 

Head coach Garland Bartlett attributes Crosby’s successes to her mindset. 

“One thing I appreciate about Piper is that she takes accountability,” Bartlett mentioned. “This year, she recognized she needed more aerobic work and adjusted her training accordingly. That kind of ownership makes a big difference.” 

The males’s crew had a number of robust showings as properly to complete the day, as sophomore Luke Martens recorded a PR of 16:02.48 within the males’s 1,650 freestyle.

“The mile honestly wasn’t really on my radar when I first got to American,” Martens mentioned. “On my club team, guys were swimming 15:20 or 15:30 miles, so I focused more on the 200 fly, 400 IM and 500 free.” 

Despite this, he turned the one particular person on the lads’s crew to swim the mile due to lingering accidents, putting 18th within the occasion whereas recording the eleventh greatest all-time 1,650 at AU. This end result, nevertheless, is a reminder to Martens of dwelling within the second and being part of a crew. 

“The results feel good for a little while, but what makes it worth it is being part of something bigger than yourself,” Martens mentioned. 

Other Eagles, equivalent to junior Ryan Tiffany and sophomore Cole Coffman, had robust showings. In the 200 butterfly, Tiffany positioned 18th within the C-final (sixth all-time at American), whereas Coffman completed robust in prelims, shifting him to tenth place all-time at American. 

Overall, regardless of each the lads’s and girls’s groups rating within the backside 5, the long run is shiny, in line with coach Bartlett. 

“Every year, the goal is to get better,” Bartlett mentioned. “We want to continue improving and competing at a high level in the Patriot League.” 

This article was edited by Connor Sturniolo, Jack Stashower and Walker Whalen. Copy enhancing completed by Avery Grossman, Mattie Lupo and Ryan Sieve.

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