Kenyon Men, Denison Women Ascend To Top Spots In CSCAA Division III December Poll

Courtesy: CSCAA

December 15, 2023 – Lewisburg, PA – The College Swimming and Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA) released the November edition of the Division III Top 25 dual meet poll. The Kenyon Men and Denison Women are the top ranked dual meet teams in the country following the completion of the majority of mid-season invitationals. Both the Kenyon Men and Denison Women were ranked second in last month’s poll.

The committee, consisting of Division III coaches, assesses and ranks the nation’s top 25 dual meet teams. Their evaluation takes into account head-to-head dual meet outcomes, performances since the last rankings, season-long performances, dual meet records, roster changes (such as injuries) and data from the SwimCloud Simulator. It’s important to note that the poll’s objective is not to predict the top finishers in a championship meet format.

On the men’s side, the Kenyon Owls (500 points) took every first-place vote to jump second place Emory (479 points). NYU (461) jumped up two spots to crack the top three, while Chicago (439) and Tufts (421) round out the top five. The poll saw the most significant movement up the rankings from Tufts – 17 to 5 and MIT – 14 to 7. Other moves of note include TCNJ from 16 to 13 and Hope from 20 to 16. UW-Eau Claire – 21, Gettysburg – 22, UW-Stevens Point and Rowan make their season debuts in the top 25. Overall, 28 programs received votes.

For the women, Denison was unanimously chosen as the top team with 425 points. Kenyon (408) moves up into 2nd, while Emory (390) appears at 3rd. NYU (374) moves up one spot to 4th and MIT (353) rounds out the top 5. WashU – 14 and UW Eau-Claire – 22 made this month’s most significant leaps, each moving up three spots. Middlebury – 20 and Rhodes – 25 both make their season debut in the top 25. In all, 28 teams received votes.

*It is important to note, some programs had their first competitions of the year in the time between polls.

You can find a complete list of the rankings at: www.cscaa.org/top25

Each committee includes 17 representatives from the four Division III Regions. The women and men committee chairs are Jake Taber (Hope) and Sean Tedesco (USMMA).

The remaining polls are scheduled for release on: January 26, February 9 and Friday March 1. Dates are subject to adjustment.

Division III Men

Also Receiving Votes

Amherst (12), Colby (4), Caltech (1)

Division III Women

Also Receiving Votes

RIT (5), Amherst (4), Depauw (1)

Women’s Poll Committee

Chris Brown, Scranton; Greg Brown, Gettysburg; Brad Burnham, Bowdoin; Jay Daniels, Puget Sound; Jon Duncan, Southwestern; Brad Dunn, Lynchburg; John Geissinger, Hamilton; Logan LaBerge, Kalamazoo; Rich Munson, Drew; Shannon O’Brien, RPI; Brooke Plotz, Carleton; Cathleen Pruden, Trinity (TX); Annie Ryder, Wisconsin-Eau Claire; Meg Sisson-French, MIT; Jake Taber, Hope (National Chair); Jason Weber, Chicago; Mark Yankovich, Widener.

Men’s Poll Committee

Justin Anderson, Mary Washington; Phil Baratela, RIT. Andy Brabson, Cal Tech; Peter Casares, Bates; Jennifer Cournoyer, Norwich; Keith Crawford, Rose-Hulman; Sam Davy, Swarthmore;  Paul Dotterweich, SUNY Geneseo; David Dow, TCNJ; Astrid Escobar, Berry; Dan Forsythe, Amherst; Jim Halliburton, Washington-St. Louis; Rob Harrington, Wooster; Sarah James, Southwestern; Connor Rumpit, NYU; Pat Smith, Westminster; Brent Summers, Willamette; Sean Tedesco, USMMA (National Chair); Jason Weber, Chicago; Seth Weidmann, Carthage.