MIDDLEBURY, V.T. -- The Dartmouth swimming and diving team swept Middlebury with ease on Wednesday evening.
On the women's side, it was all blue ribbon finishes for the Big Green. Freshman Liz Mancuso led the charge winning three individual events to help the Dartmouth women knock off Middlebury 144.5-113.5.
Mancuso placed first in the 50-yard backstroke (28.80), 50-yard freestyle (25.01) and 100-yard backstroke (1:02.68). Hawaiian native Kristin Simunovich '06 also won all her events of the evening, winning the 100-yard freestyle (53.88), 200-yard freestyle (1:55.86) and anchoring the victorious 200-yard freestyle relay team, which finished in 1:39.69. In the relay, Simunovich was preceded by teammates Mariah Cunnick '06, Lizzie Rippe '05 and Laura Nelson '05, who swam the first three legs.
Junior Dana Charles was a double winner, placing first in both the 50-yard breaststroke (31.45) and100-yard breaststroke (1:09.14), while Melissa Kern '07 took home the top spot in the 500-yard freestyle (5:08.95).
The Dartmouth women return to action on Sat. at 12 p.m., when they will face the University of Vermont at the Karl Michael Pool.
The Big Green men continued their triumphant rampage, knocking off Middlebury with a slew of record breaking performances. Sean Robinson '05, Yale Fillingham '06, and Peter Laidlaw '07 set pool records in the 100 individual medley, 200 freestyle, and 500 freestyle respectively. Senior co-captain Michael Hipps won two individual events, helping Dartmouth devour the Panthers, 146-106.
Hipps placed first in the 50-yard backstroke (24.70) and 100-yard butterfly (51.20). Fillingham won the 100-yard freestyle (47.26) in addition to the 200-yard freestyle (1:41.20), and swam the first leg for the 200-yard freestyle relay team, which won with a time of 1:29.01.
Laidlaw and juniors John Reidy and Chris Mudd swam the final three legs for the 200-yard freestyle relay team. Mudd also won the 100-yard backstroke (54.53) while Laidlaw earned a spot in Middlebury folklore with his record-smashing 500-yard freestyle (4:40.51).
Also winning events were junior Kemper Diehl, who took the 50-yard freestyle (21.91), and Robinson, who swam the 100-yard individual medley in 55.06 seconds.
A particularly excited Robinson was nonplussed by his achievement.
"At first, I asked myself 'Am I really the fastest person ever to swim the 100 individual medley in this pool?'" Robinson reflected. "Then I realized in fact I was the fastest swimmer ever in the 100 individual medley at Middlebury's pool because that is indeed what a pool record means."
Sophomore Evan Sparks continued to light up the spring board, winning both diving events with scores of 280.2 on the one-meter, and 295.5 on the three-meter. "Diving is like a very beautiful woman," said Sparks. He failed, however, to finish the thought.
The Dartmouth men hope to keep up their outstanding swimming when they head to the EISL Championships from March 3-5 in Cambridge, Mass.
