CAMBRIDGE, Mass. – The Bentley University men's and women's swimming and diving teams made their season debut Saturday afternoon by competing in the Batterman Relays at MIT. The Falcon swimmers had one second-place finish and seven thirds during the non-scoring meet that also included MIT and Wheaton College.
The second was achieved in the women's 200 yard breaststroke relay with senior Ali Koeber (Boulder, Colo./Lakeview HS) combining with sophomore Kaitlin McGahie (Boylston/Tahanto Reg. HS) and freshman Emily Niemiec (Meriden, Conn./Francis T. Maloney HS) for a time of 219.89.
The women also had a trio of thirds with McGahie and Niemiec each involved in two. They were both part of the 200 yard medley relay, swimming to a time of 1:57.90 with the quartet also including senior Danielle Hellstern (Southbury, Conn./Pomperaug HS) and junior Melissa Clauss (Oakland, N.J./ Bergen County Academies).
In the 200 backstroke relay, Clauss, Niemiec, sophomore Laura Schlenker (Wheaton, Ill./ Wheaton Warrenville South HS) and junior Lindsey Goodwin (Staten Island, N.Y./Notre Dame Academy) were third in 2:00.69. Hellstern and McGahie teamed with senior Nadine Edwards (Danbury, Conn./Danbury HS) and freshman Jessica Chen (Darien, Conn./Darien HS) for a time of 3:49.96 in the 400 freestyle relay, also good for third.
Junior Sebastian Bury (Bellevue, Wash./Newport Senior HS) and sophomore Davis Wilson (Ransom Canyon, Texas/Lubbock HS) was part of three men's relays that finished third, beginning with the 500 freestyle crescendo. In that one, they combined with senior Rene Faria (Caracas, Venezuela) and sophomore Liam Bartlett (Syracuse, N.Y./William Nottingham HS) for a 4:29.58.
Bury and Wilson were also part of third-place relays in the 200 and 400 freestyle. In the 200, Bentley finished in 1:29.62 with the relay participants the same as in the 500 free crescendo. The 400 included freshman Chris Vukas (Randolph, N.J./Randolph HS) and senior Luke Mason (Lowell/Lowell HS) with Bentley finishing in 3:24.49.
The other third was the 200 butterfly relay with sophomore Gregory Coleman (Lake Ronkonkoma, N.Y./Sachem North HS) anchoring. Preceding him in the pool were junior Alex Liulakis (Tenafly, N.J./Tenafly HS) and sophomores Colin McCarthy (Glastonbury, Conn./Northwest Catholic HS) and Jerrod Zimmer (Middletown, Conn./Middletown HS) with the Falcons posting a 1:41.10.
There was also diving action with Bentley's top finishers senior Paige Wilde (Naugatuck, Conn./ Holy Cross HS) and junior Colton Bridge (Tolland, Conn./Tolland HS). Wilde was second in the women's one-meter (219.60), Bridge was third in the men's one-meter (203.80) and both were the only competitors from the three-meter board.
Bentley opens its dual schedule Wednesday at home against WPI.
