WALTHAM, Mass. – Both Brandeis Swimming and Diving teams were victorious on Senior Day, defeating the Clark Cougars. The men won by a margin of 132-95, while the women took it 139-74.
The men won all eleven events on the afternoon. A team of freshman Benjamin Francis (Brooklyn, N.Y. / Brooklyn Friends School), sophomore Tamir Zitelny (Syosset, N.Y. / Syosset) and seniors Richard Avrutsky (Needham, Mass. / Needham) and Zach Diamond (Staten Island, N.Y. / Staten Island Academy) started the day off with a bang, taking the 200-yard medley relay with a time of 1:42.65. Sophomore Thomas Alger (Plymouth, Mass. / Sacred Heart) was the only individual multiple winner on the day, winning the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 24.19 and the 100-yard backstroke in 57.79. In both races, Alger narrowly beat out teammate and freshman Joe Beletti-Naccarato (Delmar, N.Y. / Bethlehem Central), who took second place. A team of Francis, Selznick, Diamond, and senior Taku Harada (Henrico, Va. / Mills E. Godwin) closed out the meet with a win in the 200-yard freestyle relay, completing the event in 1:35.31
The other individual winners on the men's side were:
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Freshman Tyr Hondorf (Oak Ridge, Tenn. / Oak Ridge), who took the 1000-yard freestyle by nearly thirty seconds, in 1:01.93;
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Freshman Daniel Wohl (Chapel Hill, N.C. / East Chapel Hill) in the 200-yard freestyle (1:45.21);
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Freshman Richard Selznick (Las Vegas, Nev. / Palos Verde), who took the 400-yard IM by over 10 seconds with a time of 4:20.86;
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Zitelny in the 100-yard butterfly (53.21);
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Freshman Chase Chen (Villanova, Penn. / The Hill School), who won the 100-yard freestyle in 49.66;
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Harada, who won the 500-yard freestyle in 5:15.75;
- And Avrutsky, who took the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:03.01.
The women won ten events on the afternoon. They also started the day off well, as a team of senior Amy Sheinhait (Framingham, Mass. / Framingham) and freshmen Audrey Kim (Livingston, N.J. / Livingston), Emily McGovern (Chatham, N.J. / Chatham) and Rachel Goldblatt (Atlanta, Ga. / Galloway School) won the 200-yard medley relay in 1:59.32. The women had three multiple winners for the meet, Goldblatt, McGovern and junior Kylie Herman (Weston, Fla. / Cypress Bay). Goldblatt won the 200-yard freestyle in 2:06.93 and the 100-yard butterfly in 1:02.77. McGovern took the 400-yard IM in 5:05.69 and 100-yard breaststroke in 1:12.45. Herman won the 1000-yard freestyle with a time of 11:23.20 and the 500-yard freestyle by nearly ten seconds, with a time of 5:37.16. A team of Sheinhait, senior Abby Damsky (New York, N.Y. / The Brearley School), and freshmen Sofia Chevez (New York, N.Y. / Beacon) and Annie Huang (Chapel Hill, N.C. / East Chapel Hill) won the final meet of the day, the 200-yard freestyle relay, with a time of 1:46.86.
The other individual winners on the women's side were:
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Sophomore Natalya Wozab (Plantation, Fla. / Saint Thomas Aquinas), who took the 100-yard freestyle in 58.12;
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And Kim in the 100-yard backstroke (1:04.48).
Before the meet, the Judges honored all of their seniors for four years of dedication to the program. They are:
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Andrew Baker (Wilmington, Mass. / Austin Preparatory)
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Sam Scudere-Weiss (Belchertown, Mass. / Belchertown)
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Sam Zucker (Omaha, Neb. / Anderson)
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Genna Karp (Springfield, N.J. / Golda Och Academy)
Both squads are back in action on Wednesday, February 14, when they will compete in the University Athletic Association Championships in Atlanta, hosted by Emory. The Championships run four days, through Saturday, February 17.
--Corey Cohen