Four-time NCAA Division III champion Tobe Obochi plans to use his Covid fifth-year with the Engineers while pursuing a master’s of engineering in computer science.
Last March, Obochi picked up his second individual NCAA title, winning the 50 free. A year prior, he had finished 8th in the championship final of the same event. During his sophomore campaign in 2022, he won the 100 free and contributed key legs to MIT’s winning 200 and 400 free relays.
Obochi has been a key component of the Engineers’ relays in his career, even going so far as to forgo a third individual event to swim all five relays. He holds six school records across all five relays and the 100 free.
Notably, Obochi’s best time in the 100 free is just 0.15-seconds off of Oliver Smith’s Division III record (42.98). He’s split as fast as 42.36 on relays in the past.
Even with Obochi returning, MIT will need to reload some of their relays: their 400 and 800 free relays at Nationals consisted of three seniors.
The MIT women will also gain a fifth-year sprint addition in Alex Turvey, who received the Walter Byers Graduate Scholarship to pursue the Harvard/MIT M.D.-Ph.D. program. Turvey spent her undergraduate career at Pomona College, graduating with a 4.0 in biology. She won the Elite 90 Award in 2023.
(The Ivy League does not allow graduate students to compete, so joining the Crimson was not an option.)
Turvey had a stellar senior season with the Sagehens, recording three individual runner-up finishes in the 50 free, 100 free, and 100 fly, as well as earning two relay titles in the 200 free relay and 400 free relay. Her times from last season would have led the Engineers’ roster.
Additionally, Turvey will be a valuable asset to MIT’s relays. At Nationals, Pomona-Pitzer was one of only two teams with multiple 22-point splits in the 200 free relay (PP had three; Williams had two). Similarly, in the 400 free relay, PP was the only team with more than one sub-50 split.
Combined with first-year standout Ella Roberson, the Engineers’ top sprinter last year, MIT could be poised to make even more of a splash in the women’s relays after winning their first title in team history in the 200 medley.
MIT finished 5th in the women’s meet last season, their highest team finish in program history.
In addition to Obochi and Turvey, MIT has six fifth-year graduate students on the roster (though the men’s roster seems incomplete at time of publishing), including All-Americans Sydney Chun and Brian Li.
worth reposting…
Alex Turvey, who received the Walter Byers Graduate Scholarship to pursue the Harvard/MIT M.D.-Ph.D. program.
I’m a beaver,
You’re a beaver,
We are beavers all!
And when we get together,
We do the beaver call!
E to the u du dx,
E to the x dx!
Cosine secant tangent sine,
3.14159,
Integral, radical, mu, dv!
Slipstick, slide rule, M-I-T!
Go tech!
With Obochi coming back this season despite some of the other guys either being done or still not 100% on a 5th year, I think this is MIT’s only shot at the moment at not only the title for the 400 free relay but also the legendary D3 record. I believe they are getting 2 other 44. Recruits this year along with Nathan Kim so I think they have a shot at it this year.
1. This is awesome and congrats to MIT for locking in two of the best student athletes in the country last year to take advantage of their 5th year. Also love the PP —> MIT connection! 😎
2. That 4 free seems to be taking shape to be awesome to watch in Greensboro come March. MIT will be loaded but don’t sleep on UChicago who add grad transfers of their own with gun start times of 44.1 and 44.2 to be teamed up with their existing returners. Should be fun!