Cornell Women Earn First Ivy Victory of the Season vs. Brown; Brown Men Win

BROWN vs. CORNELL

TEAM SCORES

WOMEN

  1. Cornell 173
  2. Brown 122

MEN

  1. Brown 171.5
  2. Cornell 126.5

PRESS RELEASE – BROWN MEN

ITHACA, N.Y. – The Brown men’s swimming & diving team closed out the regular season with a 171.5-126.5 victory over Cornell on Saturday at Teagle Pool. The win was capped off by the 400 freestyle relay team breaking the pool record in the final event.

“Today’s win on the road was a great way to cap off the dual meet season and carry momentum to championships,” said head coach Kevin Norman. “Cornell is a tough place to race, and it being their Senior Day, we knew there would be a lot of emotion and that we would have to be ready. This team has proven all year it’s a tough, gritty group and this afternoon was a perfect example of that. Cornell kept coming at us, but we did a great job of responding. The 1-2-3 finish in the 200 breaststroke with Toshiki TakahashiBen Hayes and Vincent Huang was a big turning point in the meet.”

Diving opened up the meet against the Big Red on Friday with sophomore Trevor Labuda (Los Altos, Calif.) leading the Bears with a victory in the 3M (331.58) and a second-place finish in the 1M (301.72). Senior William McNelis (Grosse Pointe Woods, Mich.) also finished third in both the 1M (223.05) and the 3M (278.63).

Senior Joon Sung (Los Angeles, Calif.), senior Coley Sullivan (Louisville, Ky.), sophomore I.I. Qiao (Naperville, Ill.) and senior Alex Smilenov (Katy, Texas) started competition on Saturday by winning the 200 medley relay in 1:30.44.

Freshman Kabir Randhawa (Dix Hills, N.Y.) followed by taking first in the 1000 freestyle in 9:33.57 while freshman Lukas Scheidl (Mendham, N.J.) (9:37.63) and sophomore Nico Ortega (Caracas, Venezuela/Westport, Conn.) (9:45.21) went 3-4.

Junior Michael Lincoln (Palo Alto, Calif.) won the 200 freestyle in 1:39.59 and freshman Tyler Lu (Pleasanton, Calif.) claimed third in 1:41.58.

Sung led the Bears in the 100 backstroke with a time of 49.33 for second-place while Sullivan came in fourth (50.51). Sophomore Reid Arwood (Asheville, N.C.) later took second in the 200 of the backstroke with Sullivan (1:50.60) and freshman Colin MacKellar (Southbury, Conn.) (1:50.84) in third and fourth, respectively.

Freshman Vincent Huang (League City, Texas) tied for first in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 56.16 as senior Toshiki Takahashi (Tokyo, Japan) (56.47) and sophomore Ben Hayes (River Hills, Wis.) (56.80) took third and fourth, respectively. Takahashi later recorded a victory in the 200 of the event in 2:01.20 with Hayes (2:02.07) and Huang (2:02.09) going 2-3.

Brown was paced by junior Riley Pestorius (Bridgewater, N.J.) finishing second in the 200 butterfly (1:49.66) while Qiao followed in fifth (1:51.76). Sung took second in the 100 butterfly in 49.39 with Qiao (49.96, fourth) and senior Jagger Stephens (Agana Heights, Hagatna, Guam) (50.07, fifth) also contributing points.

A victory was turned in by senior Cody Cline (Wellington, Fla.) in the 50 freestyle, touching the wall in 20.38. Smilenov also took third in the event in 20.69 and later placed second in the 100 (45.83) while sophomore Lucas Hess (Salt Lake City, Utah) came in fifth (46.29).

The Bears took the top two spots in the 500 freestyle with Lu winning in 4:36.71 and Lincoln coming in second (4:37.81). Scheidl also added a fourth-place finish (4:39.49).

Hayes won the last individual event of the day, the 200 IM, in 1:51.66 with junior Alex Park (Dix Hills, N.Y.) (1:52.81) and Huang (1:53.34) also going 3-4.

Sung, Lincoln, Sullivan and Smilenov closed the meet by breaking the Teagle Pool record in the 400 freestyle relay with a time of 2:58.58 for first place.

“I couldn’t be happier for our seniors picking up a win in their last dual meet in a Brown cap,” said Norman. “They’ve led this team all year and people have fed off of their enthusiasm. It was also special to see the 400 freestyle relay of Joon SungMichael LincolnColey Sullivan and Alex Smilenov put a stamp on the win breaking the Teagle Hall Pool record.”

The Bears will next compete at the Ivy League Championships, Wednesday, Feb. 26 through Saturday, Feb. 29, hosted by Harvard.

PRESS RELEASE – CORNELL WOMEN

ITHACA, N.Y. – Competing in its final home meet of the season, the Cornell women’s swimming and diving team celebrated Senior Day in the best way it knows how: by defeating Brown, 173-127, on Saturday at the Teagle Pool in Ithaca, N.Y. for its first Ivy League victory of the 2019-20 campaign.

The Big Red’s victory over the Bears on Saturday snapped a five-meet win streak for Brown against Cornell, who posted its first win against the Bears since the 2013-14 campaign. The Big Red won 11 of the possible 16 events on Saturday en route to victory. The timing for Cornell to pick up an Ivy League win and build momentum is impeccable, as the next time the team will hit the water will be the 2020 Ivy League Championships on Feb. 19-22.

On their day of recognition for everything they have contributed to the Cornell women’s swimming and diving program, seniors Laurel KiselisCape Murch Elliot, and Vanessa Ruiz were faces to watch for the Big Red. Kiselis helped Cornell go 1-2 in the 200-yard freestyle, winning the event in 1:50.65, while also finishing third in the 50-yard freestyle (23.97).

It was Ruiz that shined in the 50-yard freestyle, pacing a group of Big Red swimmers that swept the podium in the event. Ruiz was the first to touch the wall in 23.68, followed by Melissa Parker in second (23.78) and Kiselis in third.

Murch Elliot, along with Allison Chang, found success in the breaststroke events, as the senior tri-captain won the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 1:04.57 and finished third in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:24.65). Chang also excelled in both events, winning the 200-yard breaststroke (2:19.10) and finishing just behind Murch Elliot in second in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:04.91).

Sophia Cherkez continued her strong junior campaign, recording a pair of victories in the 200-yard IM (2:05.59) and 500-yard freestyle (4:57.55). She notched a second-place finish in the 200-yard freestyle as well, completing the race in 1:51.30.

Cornell’s 200-yard backstroke swimmers came out ready to go on Saturday, as Gillian Caverly and Alexandra Handlin both cracked the Big Red’s all-time top-10 list. Caverly (2:01.85) and Handlin (2:02.35) finished second and third, respectively, with the eighth- and 10th-fastest times in Cornell women’s swimming and diving history.

Maegan Rudolph made her presence known in the butterfly events, winning the 100-yard butterfly (56.13) and finishing second in the 200-yard butterfly (2:05.76). She was joined by good company in the 100-yard butterfly, as Lexi Schaaf placed second (56.15) to help Cornell go 1-2 in the event.

In the diving events, Demetra Williams and Elise Jendritz continue to feed off of each other en route to success. Williams emerged victorious in the 1-meter diving (251.92 points), while Jendritz got the “W” in the 3-meter diving (305.40 points). Williams followed up her win in the 1-meter with a second-place finish in the 3-meter (262.36 points). Jendritz also notched a third-place finish in the 1-meter (236.85 points).

Both of Cornell’s relay teams solidified wins on Saturday as well. The 200-yard medley relay team made up of Isabel Chien, Murch Elliot, Schaaf, and Parker secured a win for the Big Red in the first event of the day, placing first in 1:44.61. The 400-yard freestyle relay composed of Chloe Mikles, Rudolph, Parker, and Kiselis then solidified the team victory for Cornell in the final event of the day, touching the wall first in 3:26.53.

The Cornell women’s swimming and diving team will compete in what it’s been training for all season when it hits the water next for the 2020 Ivy League Championships. Hosted by Brown, the championship meet will take place on Feb. 19-22 in Providence, R.I.

OTHER NOTABLE PERFORMANCES:

100-yard Freestyle
3rd – Chloe Mikles (52.10)

1,000-yard Freestyle
T-3rd – Lavona Harper (10:26.66)
T-3rd – Taylor Knibb (10:26.66)

100-yard Backstroke
3rd – Aviva Muñoz (56.87)

PRESS RELEASE – BROWN WOMEN

ITHACA, N.Y. – The Brown women’s swimming & diving team was defeated by Cornell, 173-127, on Saturday at Teagle Pool. Five Bears registered individual victories in the team’s final Ivy League meet of the regular season.

“Our women threw down some great regular season dual meet races today,” said head coach Kate Kovenock. “They were composed, tough, and resilient. That will serve them well for our Ivy Championships target.”

The divers kicked things off against the Big Red on Friday night with junior Julia Feord (Royal Oak, Mich.) leading the Bears in both the 1M (242.99, second) and 3M (255.37, third). Sophomore Liv Mitchell (Laguna Beach, Calif.) (229.19, fourth) and senior Emily Zitkovsky (Lexington, Mass.) (226.57, fifth) followed Feord in the 1M. In the 3M, junior Marisa Agarwal (Palo Alto, Calif.) (251.47, fourth) and Mitchell (231.22, sixth) also placed.

To open Saturday, a team of junior Taylor Seaman (Brighton, Mich.), sophomore Audrey Lukawski (San Francisco, Calif.), freshman Sage Matsushima (Huntington Beach, Calif.) and senior Marley Cross (Seattle, Wash.) finished second in the 200 medley relay with a time of 1:45.37.

Senior Julia Armitage (Cleveland Heights, Ohio) followed by winning the 1000 freestyle with a time of 10:21.15 while sophomore Emma Whall (Dover, N.H.) took second in 10:24.75.

Senior Amelia Gilchrist (Greensboro, N.C.) (1:53.60) and sophomore Miku Takabayashi (Glastonbury, Conn.) (1:53.61) next went 3-4 in the 200 freestyle.

Matsushima recorded a victory in the 100 backstroke, touching the wall in 56.62 while senior Sarah Welch (Beverly, Mass.) was close behind in second (56.86). Welch later won the 200 backstroke in 2:01.24 with sophomore Victoria Gong (Laguna Niguel, Calif.) taking fourth (2:03.50).

The 100 breaststroke saw Lukawski take third (1:05.17) and junior Deanne Umbay (North Hills, Calif.) claim fourth (1:08.67). Lukawski again led the Bears in the 200 of the event, this time moving up a spot in second (2:19.82) while Takabayashi came in fourth (2:25.98).

Freshman Nell Chidley (Mystic, Conn.) won the 200 butterfly in 2:01.73 while sophomore Maija Ninness (Santa Barbara, Calif.) (2:06.38) and sophomore Caylene Rippon (Hershey, Pa.) (2:07.17) placed third and fourth, respectively. In the 100 of the event, Matsushima (56.18, third) led the Brown as junior Han Nguyen (Los Gatos, Calif.) (56.64, fourth) and Chidley (56.75, fifth) followed.

The Bears went 1-2 in the 100 freestyle with Seaman taking the win in 51.56 and Cross right behind her in second (51.68). The two had closes finishes again in the 50 freestyle with Cross (24.00, fourth) edging Seaman (24.01, fifth).

Brown went 2-3-4 in the 500 freestyle with freshman Audrey Orange (New York City, N.Y.) leading the group in second with a time of 5:01.28 with Gilchrist (5:01.40) and freshman Sasha Liu (Piedmont, Calif.) (5:07.27) behind her.

Umbay turned in a second-place finish in the 200 IM with a time of 2:07.86 while Nguyen (2:08.14) took third and Lukawski (2:09.00) came in fourth.

The 400 freestyle relay team of Seaman, Takabayashi, Gilchrist and Cross came in second with a time of 3:26.65 to close the meet.

The Bears will next compete at the Boston Winter Open, Friday, Feb. 7 through Saturday, Feb. 8, hosted by Boston University.

PRESS RELEASE – CORNELL MEN

ITHACA, N.Y. – Led by seven seniors who will be swimming in the final home meet of their careers, the Big Red men’s swimming and diving team will compete in its last meet before the Ivy League Championships on Feb. 26-29 when it hosts Brown on Jan. 24-25 at the Teagle Pool in Ithaca, N.Y.

SETTING THE SCENE:

The Big Red will return home for the first time since hosting Binghamton on Nov. 26, 2019, when it welcomes Brown to the Teagle Pool on Senior Day. Cornell will celebrate its seven seniors – Ryan BrownDylan CurtisMatthew DanielRyan GraffTrevor LakeJack Mahoney, and Cyrus Morrison – for their hard work and dedication to the Cornell men’s swimming and diving program as they prepare to swim in their final home meet in a Big Red swim cap. Diving will kick off on Friday, Jan. 24 at 5:30 p.m., with swimming following on Saturday, Jan. 25 at 3 p.m.

THE SERIES:

The Big Red holds a 27-21 series advantage over the Bears dating back to the first meeting in 1911-12. Through the last 12 meetings, both teams have refused to give an inch, with both teams notching six wins. The odds have been in Cornell’s favor as of late, as the Big Red has won three of the last five matchups. However, Brown came out on top last season, defeating Cornell, 164.5-136.5.

SCOUTING THE BEARS:

Cornell (3-5, 1-5 Ivy) will be seeking its second conference victory of the season and will look to head toward the Ivy League Championships with some momentum when it squares off against Brown this weekend, who enters the meet with a 3-4 overall and 2-4 conference record. The Bears have posted wins over Ivy League foes Columbia (186-114) and Dartmouth (209-91), the latter of which the Big Red took down earlier this season, 166.50-133.50, on Nov. 16, 2019. Brown is coming into the meet against Cornell having defeated the Lions in its last outing on Jan. 18.

THANK YOU, SENIORS:

The Big Red’s class of seven seniors will leave a lasting impact on the Cornell men’s swimming and diving program, setting four school records, recording 12 individual Big Red all-time top-10 marks, and helping 19 relays crack Cornell’s all-time top-10 list during their time at Cornell. At the 2019 Ivy League Championships, Mahoney broke the Big Red’s 100-yard freestyle (43.83) and 100-yard butterfly (47.11) school records.

As a class, the seniors completely re-wrote the Big Red’s top-10 lists for the relay events, as at least four of the current top-10 times for the 200-yard medley relay, 400-yard medley relay, 200-yard freestyle relay, and 400-yard freestyle relay include at least one Cornell senior on the relay squad. Mahoney and Curtis are members of the record-holding 200-yard medley relay (1:26.00), while Mahoney and Lake helped set the school record in the 200-yard freestyle relay (1:19.09).

LAST TIME OUT:

Ryan BrownPaige daCosta, and James Huang all secured multiple individual event wins for the Big Red men’s swimming and diving team against Yale on Saturday, Jan. 18, but it wasn’t enough to help Cornell overcome the Bulldogs, as the Big Red fell, 186-114, in New Haven, Conn.

Senior tri-captain Brown made the most of his appearances in the breaststroke events, winning both the 100-yard breaststroke (56.75) and 200-yard breaststroke (2:02.69). Huang emerged victorious in the 200-yard butterfly, winning the race in 1:48.92. He did not stop there, however, also picking up a second-place finish in the 100-yard butterfly (49.14).

daCosta’s reign during his freshman season continued, as he notched at least three individual-event wins for the third-straight meet. daCosta collected victories in the 100-yard backstroke (48.98), 200-yard backstroke (1:48.41), and 200-yard IM (1:50.96).

UP NEXT:

The Cornell men’s swimming and diving team will compete in what it’s been training for all season – the 2020 Ivy League Championships. Hosted by Harvard, the championship meet will take place on Feb. 26-29 in Cambridge, Mass.

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Swimmom
4 years ago

GBR!