SMITHFIELD, R.I. – Powered by 10 season-best swims and a great effort from the divers, the Bryant University men's swimming and diving team took down Iona on Saturday afternoon by a 168-126 final in New Rochelle, N.Y.
Coach Cameron's Comments
"Our team was very resilient today in fighting to the end of the meet. We had a few tough breaks but we also showed a lot of progress in the details we have been working on and showed a lot of heart in the process."
Key Moment
After a pretty even start, the Bulldogs won four straight events from the 100 breast through the men's 1-meter to gain their distance and keep Iona at bay through the rest of the afternoon.
How the Swimmers Fared
- Graduate student Micah Ornelas (San Diego, Calif.) broke the school's 100 fly record, swimming the race in 48.49 seconds. This was part of a four win afternoon as he added individual victories in the 200 fly (1:51.51) and 200 individual medley (1:52.54).
- Senior Tavish Boyle (Springfield, N.J.) and sophomore Matthew Mays (St. Croix, Virgin Islands) added a pair of individual victories each. Boyle won the 100 breast (59.09) and 200 breast (2:09.61), while Mays touched first in the 100 back (51.67) and 200 back (1:50.52).
- Senior Matt Zichelli (Glen Ridge, N.J.) won the 50 free (21.81) and junior Robert Davis (Glastonbury, Conn.) added a win in the 500 free (4:46.62) to round out Bryant's individual victories.
- Mays, Boyle, Ornelas and Zichelli combined for the team's 200 medley relay (1:32.93) victory to open the meet.
Coach LoCurto's Comments
"While we had a lot of bright spots, we still have work to do to meet or exceed last year's performance at this time. There was a lot of very positive improvements in mechanics that will lead to even stronger results as the season progresses."
How the Divers Fared
- Sophomore Trevor Hazlewood (Corpus Christi, Texas) and junior Zach Vogel (South Easton, Mass.) scored on both boards for the Bulldogs.
- Hazlewood won both the 1-meter (224.60) and 3-meter (269.55), while Vogel placed second in the 1-meter (222.15) and third in the 3-meter (239.95).
- Senior Kevin Sullivan (East Lyme, Conn.) earned second-place honors in the 3-meter (252.75).
- Freshman Evan Clark (Doylestown, Pa.) earned third place in the 1-meter (220.05).
Stats and Notes
- The old school record in the 100 fly was held by Benon Boyadjian, who swam the race in 48.70 seconds.
- Davis' 500 and 1000 free (9:50.42) times were both season bests.
- Along with Zichelli's 50 free, his third-place swim in the 100 free (48.21) was his best in 2018.
- Both Mays' and Boyle's wins in the backstroke and breaststroke, respectively, consisted of season-best swims.
- Bryant's 200 medley and 400 free relay (3:10.41) were top marks in 2018.
Up Next
Bryant has their first home meet of 2018 when they face NJIT on Friday and Saturday at the Chace Athletic Center Pool.
