The Ivy League matchup on Saturday was one for the books, as Yale's Alex Righi '09 set two individual pool records. His time of 45.04 in the 100-yard freestyle broke a record set in 1968 when Dartmouth hosted the NCAA championship. Other Yale and Penn swimmers set a combined four pool records during the meet.
The Big Green men (0-8, 0-5 Ivy) fell to Penn 221-97.5 and to Yale 244-56 at the Karl Michael Pool, with Yale winning the tri-meet overall.
Captain Andrew Ballentine '09 said that the Big Green performed well and the team was not demoralized by the losses.
"The Ivy League is really fast, and we expect to see them stepping up," he said.
The Big Green divers scored some key points for Dartmouth, notching two third-place finishes. Chris Plante '12 started things off, scoring 254.50 in the one-meter event, while Mike Brown '11 followed through with 284.50 points on the three-meter board.
The Dartmouth women (2-6, 1-4 Ivy) also fell to their Ivy League counterparts, but by a somewhat closer margin. The Big Green lost 202.50-97.50 to Penn and 191-109 to Yale, as the Bulldogs took the win over the Quakers as well.
Maddie Steiner '11 battled hard in an exciting 200-yard freestyle race with a time of 1:54.20, only 0.28 off the winning pace, while Galen Barry '12 earned second-place finishes in the 100-yard backstroke in 1:00.52 and in the 200-yard backstroke in 2:08.60.
Erica Serpico '12 edged out the competition in the three-meter dive, bringing home the women's only first-place finish with a score of 272.45. She also finished third in the one-meter event, scoring 226.10.
At BU on Sunday, strong performances by both schools ended in close losses for both the men's and women's teams. The women's effort resulted in a score of 166.5-125.5 while the men came even closer to victory, losing 159-130.
Many Big Green athletes contributed points in the close men's meet. Cary Stathopoulos '10 earned a first-place finish in the 1000-yard freestyle in 10:03.13. The Big Green swept the 100-yard individual medley, led by Ballentine's time of 55.47.
Mickey Ahern '12 was the first to touch the wall in two events, the 100-yard backstroke in 52.81 and the 50-yard breaststroke in 25.09. He also placed second in the 50-yard freestyle in 22.13.
The divers excelled once again on Sunday. Plante was victorious in the one-meter event, clinching first place with a score 313.73. He also earned third-place off the three-meter board with a score of 291.15. Brown scored second in both diving events, scoring 271.88 in the one-meter and 341.78 in the three-meter.
On the women's side, Anna Sonstegard '11 took second place in both the 1000-yard and 500-yard freestyle events, as well as in the 100-yard individual medley, while Steiner took first in the 100-yard IM and second in the 100-yard and 200-yard freestyle races.
As in Saturday's meet, Serpico found success on the diving boards, winning the three-meter dive with a score of 287.40 and taking second place in the one-meter with 302.03.
The BU meet was unusual in that it was comprised heavily of sprint races, a mutual decision made by the two teams' coaches, because both BU and Dartmouth had participated in tri-meets the day before. Heather Jankins '09 said that the meet's unusual composition was not a factor in the loss.
To find their first victory and ultimate success this season, Ballentine said that the winless Big Green men will work on maintaining their current high level of focus.
"It's going to take guys stepping up and swimming fast," he said.
Jim Wilson, coach of both the men's and women's teams, said that the Big Green men have a good chance at wins in upcoming meets against Boston College, the University of Maine and the University of Rhode Island.
The Big Green women move on to face the University of New Hampshire at 6 p.m. on Wednesday in Durham, N.H. Both teams travel to Princeton this weekend for a dual meet at 11 a.m. Saturday in Princeton, N.J.
