Division III Weekly Recap: TCNJ Takes NYU by Eight

Photo Courtesy: Hayley Good

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Meet of the Week: TCNJ Takes NYU

On paper, it appeared that the NYU men would repeat their victory over TCNJ from last year. This season, it was apparent that the Lions were out to win this one right from start. TCNJ won nine of the 14 swimming events over the Violets, including a few one-two finishes and both relays.

Despite Chad Moody putting NYU in the lead after backstroke, TCNJ quickly closed in on and narrowly passed the Violets in the 200 medley relay. A solid 22.76 fly leg from Alex Skoog gave the Lions the upper hand in this one. They took the win in 1:34.38 over NYU’s 1:34.92. NYU’s B team did secure the third place points, finishing in 1:35.81.

As expected, freshman Harrison Yi took the 1,000 free (9:56.98) for TCNJ, but teammate Logan Barnes was able to out-touch NYU’s David Bravo 9:58.55 to 9:58.93 to secure the second place finish. Barnes out-split the entire field in the last 50 (27.70), fighting for the win over Bravo. This gave the Lions a nine-point swing over the Violets early on.

Seniors Scott Vitabile (1:43.03) and Ryan Gajdzisz (1:43.42) and sophomore David Madigan (1:46.18) then followed their fellow Lions’ lead by finishing first, second and third, respectively in the 200 free. This put TCNJ in a good spot headed into the sprint backstroke and breaststroke events, as they simply did not enough have star power to contest in these races.

frank-bozzi-nyu

NYU made their first comeback in the 100 back as Chad Moody took the win in 51.58. Teammates Carlos Colmenares and Nick Dionisopoulous finished third and fifth, giving NYU the 13-7 win in this event. Timothy Kou and company then did the same in the 100 breast, as Kou finished first in 57.99 and Keven Shang and Reid Hensen took third and fourth.

Samuel Maquet did what he needed to do for TCNJ in the 200 fly, winning the event in 1:55.35. This was an in-season best for Maquet and puts him fourteenth in the national rankings. Despite his efforts, TCNJ only managed a fifth-place finish as backup, providing little change in the team scores after this event.

Photo Courtesy: Hayley Good

The sprint freestyles proved TCNJ’s historic success in these events, as Adam Coppola took care of the 50 (21.64) and Vitabile did the same in the 100 (46.61). Philip Binaco also finished third in the 50 for the TCNJ, while Andrew Nesbitt did likewise in the 100. Vitabile’s 100 was a huge win for the Lions as he defeated NYU’s Kou. Kou did not swim the 200 breast, a smart move for the Violets as they later placed one-two in the event without him. Vitabile was out 22.71, a full half second over Kou and did not let up. This was certainly one event the Violets did not plan on losing.

Colmenares (NYU) took the 200 back over Skoog (TCNJ) in 1:52.76. In an attempt to put the Violets back in it, this was a huge swim for Colmenares. Not only was this a lifetime best for the freshman, but it also places him fifth in the national rankings in the mix with a handful of experienced All-Americans and national champions.

Hensen took control of the 200 breast by winning the event in 2:08.97. Teammate Albert Lee fought for the second place points by narrowly beating out TCNJ’s Andrew Ro by .50 seconds. Dionisopoulous also secured the fifth place points for NYU, giving the Violets a huge 14-5 swing in this event.

Nonetheless, Gajdzisz, Yi and Maquet teamed up for a one-two-four finish in the 500 to bring the score right back in the Lions’ favor. Vitabile then kept the momentum going headed into the second diving break by winning the 100 fly in 50.94. His swim off-set a strong two-three-four effort from NYU’s Joseph Delbuono, Daniel Tay and Sean Haechler.

Photo Courtesy: NYU Athletics

Just as it seemed TCNJ had the meet wrapped up, NYU’s Hensen, Shawn Lin and Colmenares set out to a one-two-three finish in the 200 IM. Yi and Ro of TCNJ could not contest with strong backstroke legs from all three Violets in this race. This put the score at 140-137 in favor of TCNJ headed into the final 400 free relay.

As any college swim fan would know, with a three-point deficit, all that matters is the win in this final relay. While the race was tight through the halfway point, Gadjdzisz wrapped up his impressive day by racing to a 46.45 split in the third leg setting up Nesbitt to take home the win for TCNJ. This put the Lions on top 151-143 in the end.

Keep an eye out for both of these teams at the NCAA Championships in March. While they each have different strengths, this top-10 matchup did not disappoint as the Meet of the Week. You can expect this to be a close ongoing meet and rivalry in Division III as the years go on.

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Wendy B-v

7 years ago

Go Andrew Nesbitt!