The Hopkins swim team traveled to Gettysburg, Pa. to swim against the Gettysburg College Bullets on April 23. Although this was the second meet for the men’s team and the first for the women’s, College Swimming & Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) time standards were met and personal, pool and school records were smashed.
Starting with the 200 Medley Relay, the men and women both took first and third place. Juniors Dylan Wachenfeld, Maxwell Chen and Jeff Vitek and senior Nat Davenport won the men’s event, finishing in 1:29.52 and breaking the pool record, making the CSCAA B cut and clocking in as the ninth-fastest time in program history.
Junior Sydney Okubo took first in the 200 Individual Medley with a time of 2:12.51. Wachenfeld took first for the men, clocking in at 1:51.44 and making the CSCAA B cut.
Junior Kristen Alicea-Jorgensen won the 50 Free with a time of 23.77, posting a CSCAA B time. For the men, sophomore Spencer Ryan took fourth, going 21.19.
In the 400 Individual Medley, junior Elaine Lipkin took first in 4:39.25. Senior Matt McGough also took first, going 4:01.30 and making a CSCAA B cut.
Freshman Anni Fan won the 100 Fly, posting a CSCAA B time of 56.33.
Fan commented on her first individual collegiate win in an interview with The News-Letter.
“I was really happy with the meet results given that my training this season was less than ideal because of COVID-19,” she said. “I’m also just really proud of how well our whole team did overall.”
The men swept the top four spots in the 100 Fly. Vitek broke the Hopkins record by almost eight-tenths of a second, going 47.13. He also made the CSCAA A cut and crushed the pool record by 1.49 seconds.
Vitek attributed his success in the pool to his teammates in an interview with The News-Letter.
“It's been a tough year for all of us, but I am extremely grateful to have had them at my side,“ he said. “Swimming is seen by many as an individual sport, but in reality, I couldn't have done it without my supportive teammates.”
The women swept the top four of the 200 Free, led by junior Sophia Girgenti with a 1:53.64. For the men, junior Collin Hughes won with a CSCAA B time of 1:39.40.
In the 100 Breast, sophomore Kate Overbey swam a career best of 1:05.51, landing her first place.
In the men’s 100 Breast, Chen shattered the Hopkins record by four-tenths of a second. Clocking in at 53.64, he also broke the Bullets’ pool record by nearly two seconds and made the CSCAA A cut. Sophomore Kyle Wu also made the cut and took second in 54.67. Sophomore Brandon Stride made a CSCAA B time of 56.26, landing him in third.
Only the women participated in the 100 Back, where freshman Cameron Roche won in 57.04.
In the 200 Free Relay the women’s team of Alicea-Jorgensen, Fan, Girgenti and senior Mikayla Bisignani took first with a time of 1:36.19. Alicea-Jorgensen led off with a career-best and CSCAA B time of 23.66. The men took second, with Chen, Davenport, Ryan and Vitek posting a CSCAA B time at 1:22.64, and third.
For the women, freshman Joanna Dohrman won the 1650 Free, finishing in 17:55.76. In the men’s event, freshman Kellen Roddy also took first with a CSCAA B time and pool record of 15:34.08. His 1000 Free split of 9:21.62 broke the Bullets’ pool record.
In the 200 Back, Roche earned her second win with a CSCAA B time of 2:03.13. For the men, Wachenfeld won with a CSCAA A time of 1:46.59, the sixth-fastest time in Hopkins history.
Alicea-Jorgensen got another win under her belt. She finished the 100 Free in 53.10, edging out teammate Girgenti by five-hundredths of a second (53.15). In the men’s event, Hughes won first with a career-best and CSCAA B time of 45.16. Chen, who took second, also swam a career-best of 46.04.
Alicea-Jorgensen reflected on her first meet of the season in an interview with The News-Letter.
“Being with my teammates and racing this past weekend was the best way to end this short season,” she said.
She explained why she thinks the Hopkins swim team was so successful.
“Hopkins Swimming has cultivated an environment where we don't necessarily focus on the times or cuts we want,“ she said. “It is more about pushing ourselves and our teammates to see what we are capable of.”
In the 200 Breast, Overbey won the women’s event with a CSCAA B time of 2:22.48. Stride won the men’s event, breaking a pool record and achieving a CSCAA A time of 1:59.01, the fourth-fastest in Hopkins history. Wu touched second and also made the CSCAA A cut, finishing in 1:59.98, the fifth-fastest time in school history.
Sophomore Emerson Davis won the women’s 200 Fly, clocking in at 2:07.91. For the men, Vitek barely missed his second school record by five-hundredths of a second. Regardless, his time of 1:46.93 broke a pool record and made a CSCAA A cut. Freshman Chris Seymour finished second with a CSCAA B time of 1:51.07.
In the 400 Medley Relay, the women’s team of Roche, Overbey, Davis and Alicea-Jorgensen took first, swimming a 3:54.42. The men placed second and third.
Overall. Hopkins swim had a successful meet. The men broke seven pool records and posted seven CSCAA All-America times. Chen and Vitek also broke school records in the 100 Breast and 100 Fly, respectively. The women posted five CSCAA Consideration Standards and two career bests.
Coach Scott Armstrong detailed the challenges of this particular season and how they found success in the pool.
“It has been a real lesson in consistency,” he said in an interview with The News-Letter. “The swimmers who had success this short season were able to stay really committed all year. Their training was compromised from the get-go, but by focusing on what small opportunities they did have, they were able to maximize their experience.”
