LEWISBURG, Pennsylvania, November 3.SOPHMORE Luke Trafton (Bath, Maine/Morse), sophomore Ben Leboza (Green Oaks, Ill./Libertyville) and senior John Peterman (Conestoga, Pa./Penn Manor) each won two events, helping the Bucknell men's swimming and diving team roll to a 151-100 victory over Duquesne. The Bison claimed the top spot in the first 11 events in the meet before competing exhibition in the final three and improved their record to 1-0 on the year following the day's action.
Trafton took the top spot in both the 1,000-yard freestyle and the 200 fly with times of nine minutes, 57.71 seconds, and 2:00.77, respectively, while also earning a runner-up finish in the 500 free (4:53.49). Leboza's wins came in the 200 free, with a time of 1:45.75, and in the 500 free as he reached the wall in 5:53.34. Peterman placed first in the 50 free in 21.90 and posted the fastest time in the 100 free (48.34).
Freshman Gonzalo DeLeon (Ringwood, N.J./Lakeland Regional) won the 200 back with a time of 1:57.49, followed by sophomore David Iselin (Potomac, Md./Churchill) in second with a time of 1:59.06. The duo was also a part of a 1-2-3 sweep in the 100 back, in second (55.20) and third (55.23), respectively, following behind teammate junior Mark Kawczenski's (Wilkes-Barre, Pa./Hanover Area) first-place mark of 53.70.
Senior Joseph Metcalf (Knoxville, Tenn./Phillips Exeter Academy (N.H.) collected a first-place finish in the 200 breast with a time of 2:13.31and also scored in the 100 breast with a time of 1:01.82, which was good for third. His classmate Bradford Bennett (Harleysville, Pa./Souderton Area) took first in the 100 breast, touching the wall in 59.44.
Other top finishers for the Orange and Blue included senior Theo Leriotis (Murrysville, Pa./Franklin Regional Sr. High) who placed third in the 1,000 free (10:17.00) and held the top time as an exhibition swimmer in the 200 IM (2:03.17). Freshman Michael Volpe (Pottstown, Pa./Owen J. Roberts) who captured second in the 200 fly (2:02.07) and posted the second-fastest time in the 100 fly as an exhibitioner (54.38).
The Bison opened the meet with a victory in the 200 medley relay as the squad of Kawczenski, Bennett, senior Grant Steadman (Richmond, Va./Collegiate) and Peterman combined for a time of 1:36.50. Swimming exhibition in the 200 free relay, Peterman, Kawczenski, sophomore Daniel Fletcher (Cedar Grove, N.J./Cedar Grove) and Steadman recorded the fastest time in that event, as well, 1:27.82.
Duquesne's women's swimming team captured its third straight win with a 138-124 triumph over visiting Bucknell.
Trailing by two points with two events remaining senior Melissa Johnson captured one of her three individual wins, taking the 200-yard individual medley in a Duquesne season-best time of 2:07.75 then bounced back to swim the first leg of the winning 200-yard freestyle relay just minutes later as the Dukes swam a 1:38.45.
Johnson also had wins in the 200-yard freestyle with a time of 1:54.49 and in the 100-yard freestyle in 52.73. Also winning multiple individual events was freshman Erin Sykes who took the 1,000 free in 10:27.19 and the 500 free in 5:09.83.
Other Duquesne winners included freshman Kirstie Shumaker with a 2:13.85 in the 200-yard butterfly, junior Katrina Streiner with a 24.51 in the 50 free and freshman Tara VanNatta with a 2:09.28 in the 200-yard backstroke.
Special thanks to Bucknell and Duquesne for contributing this report.