ANNAPOLIS, Md. –– Six Navy records, six Patriot League records and three Lejeune Hall records –– one of which was held by Michael Phelps –– were broken Saturday as the Navy swimming and diving teams defeated Loyola in Annapolis. The Navy men's team (2-1) posted a 156-111 victory over Loyola (1-2), and the Navy women's team (2-1) recorded a 214-65 win over the Greyhounds (1-2).
"Today was a terrific day for Navy swimming and diving," said men's swimming head coach
Bill Roberts. "Like everyone during these trying times, it has been special to witness our team persevere each and every day. They have remained totally faithful to their goals and those of the program, all with no guarantees that we get the opportunity to race and compete. Today, with a lot of hard work and a little luck, we had an opportunity to do so, and we took advantage of it. I could not be prouder of how this team came out today and performed as one.
"We also are extremely grateful to our friends at Loyola for being available to compete today. At the start of the week, each of our programs were preparing for another opponent today. We are so thankful that this meet worked out."
"I was pleased with how we performed," said Navy diving coach
Rich MacDonald. "We have been training hard the last few weeks. To get two more divers qualified for the NCAA Zone Meet was big, and having two more come up just a little shy of qualifying marks also was rewarding to see."
The first record to fall was the men's 200 medley relay standard of 1:26.25, which was the best in school, pool and facility history. The foursome of
Caleb Mauldin (Jr., Chesapeake, Va.),
Dean Nguyen (Sr., Seattle, Wash.),
Jonah Harm (Fr., Placerville, Calif.) and
Jake Evert (Fr., Bethlehem, Pa.) combined for a time of 1:25.58 to improve upon the old record.
Garrett McGovern (Fr., Nashville, Tenn.) followed with a time of 14:51.57 in the 1650 freestyle to better the Navy, Lejeune Hall and Patriot League record of 14:52.11 held by current team captain
Luke Johnson (Sr., Charlotte, N.C.).
The third event for the men, the 200 freestyle, saw
Ryan Waters (Sr., Basking Ridge, N.J.) post a time of 1:35.07 to break Tom Duvall's Navy, Lejeune Hall and Patriot League record of 1:35.20.
Another record fell in the fourth event, the 100 backstroke. Mauldin completed the race in a time of 46.16 to not only break the Navy and Patriot League record of
James Wilson (46.78), but also break the Lejeune Hall standard of 46.54 set by Phelps on Dec. 10, 2011.
Sydney Harrington (Jr., Fairfax, Va.) broke her own Navy, Patriot League and Lejeune Hall record of 1:54.47 when she posted a time of 1:53.74 in winning the 200 butterfly.
The final record to be set on the day was the men's 200 backstroke.
Dominick Wallace (Sr., La Jolla, Calif.) touched the wall in a time of 1:41.95 to better his own Navy and Patriot League record of 1:42.88.
The Navy men's team would win all 16 events against the Greyhounds, and the Navy women's team won all but the 200 individual medley race.
Harrington, who won both butterfly events,
Sarah Sorensen (Jr., Gainesville, Fla.), who won the women's sprint freestyle races, and Evert, the winner of the men's 50 and 100 free events, were the lone competitors to win two individual events.
The Navy men's swimmers totaled 19 NCAA B cut times and the women's swimmers posted three B cut times. Additionally, the Navy diving teams combined for five NCAA Zone A Diving Championship qualifying marks (three men, two women).
Navy will be back in Lejeune Hall Sunday at 1 p.m. when the Mids play host to George Washington.
