The Monmouth University men’s and women’s swimming teams opened up their Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) play against Fairfield University this Saturday, Oct. 26 at Leslie C. Quick RecPlex Pool. The men’s team pulled through with a close 154.5 – 133.5 victory, while the women’s team fell to Fairfield 105 – 189.
The meet took place in a meter pool, which is longer than the 25-yard pool Monmouth teams typically compete in during their season.
For the men, sophomore Callan Smith really showed up. Smith won three individual events: the 100m backstroke, 200m backstroke, and 400m free stroke. These three first-place victories were Smith’s first of the 2019 season, and he now has 34 individual career wins.
Junior Trevor Askew came out victorious in the 100m and 200m breaststroke. This was Askew’s third and fourth first-place accomplishments of this season, and he now has ten in his career.
Freshmen Blake Reynolds and Thomas From both won events. Reynolds won the 50m free stroke with a time of 23.80 as well as the 100m fly with a time of 57.26. These were his third and fourth wins of the season. From earned his first two career wins by completing the 100m free stroke in 53.61 and the 200m free stroke in 1:59.45.
Reynolds, From, Smith and freshman Ben Yeung used a collaborative effort to come in first place for the men’s 400m free relay, finishing with a time of 3:34.68.
This victory for the men is their second-consecutive head-to-head win over the Fairfield University Stags.
As for the women’s team, although they were not victorious, there were still some notable performances.
Freshman Tahlia Botha came in first in three races: the 100m breaststroke, 200m breaststroke, and 200m individual medley (IM). Botha now has four individual wins under her belt.
Freshman Alexandra Ho touched the wall at 59.71 in the 100m free, awarding her her first-collegiate win. Sophomore Camryn McHugh won the 100m backstroke in 1:05.40 earning her third victory of the season. This was McHugh’s 27th individual win of her collegiate career.
For the women’s 400m free relay, Mchugh, senior Bradie Keelen, and junior Louise Barker combined their talents in order to come in first place with a time of 4:10.91.
“Despite some tough early circumstances, including a disqualification on a false start of the winning medley relay and giving away a big chunk of points in diving, the team stayed focused throughout the meet,” said Head Coach Matt Nunnally. “It was good to see them show resilience considering the challenges. This type of performance will go a long way in building our confidence as we move toward our midseason and championship meets.”
Monmouth did not compete in the diving events, which gave Fairfield an opportunity to earn points toward their teams’ totals.
The Hawks will be welcoming Mount. St. Mary’s University to Steadman Natatorium this Friday, Nov. 1 at 4:00 p.m. This will be Monmouth’s home-opening meet for the 2019-20 season.
PHOTO COURTESY of Karlee Sell
