"Yale is typically a strong team, [but] we had been looking to beat Penn," head coach Jim Wilson said. "Penn changed their training to beat Yale. Dartmouth is on a completely different academic schedule than any other [Ivy League team], and Penn isn't even back in school yet. They just got back from their training trip. So we're at a different points in the season."
Although the Big Green did not beat the Quakers or the Bulldogs, the meet included a number of standout individual performances by the men's team (1-4, 1-4 Ivy). Mickey Ahern '12 finished first in the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 51.31 and Nejc Zupan '14 won the 500-yard freestyle in 4:35.26. Zupan also won the 200-yard individual medley, with a time of 1:52.91.
Against Penn (3-4, 3-3 Ivy), Zupan finished first in the 1000-yard freestyle. John Hill '12 topped all Quakers in the 200-yard freestyle, and William Derdeyn '13 defeated all Penn swimmers in the 100-yard butterfly.
Dylan Gabel '14 recorded a personal best time in the 1000-yard freestyle an impressive feat at this stage in the season, according to Haley.
The absence of Albert Roth '13, one of the team's top swimmers, also affected the team's success. Roth could not compete due to a last-minute illness, according to swimmers interviewed by The Dartmouth.
"Having one of our strongest swimmers sick for the meet was tough, he's definitely a big contributor," co-captain Billy Haley '11 said. "We lost some of our depth and shuffled around, which was a big challenge."
Although the team failed to beat Yale and Penn, the meet served to help prepare the Big Green for when it will face the teams at the Ivy Champsionships in February.
"It was probably not our best showing," diver Michael Brown '11 said. "However, Penn and Yale are definitely teams that we wanted to see before championships this year, and now we have a better idea of what to expect."
The women's team (3-3, 2-3 Ivy) also had its hands full when facing Penn (4-3, 3-3 Ivy) and Yale (5-0, 4-0 Ivy).
"We came within 30 points, which, when you consider that every point you score takes away from them, means we were pretty close," Wilson said.
The loss also included encouraging individual results. Danielle Kerr '14 won the 1000-yard freestyle with a time of 10:14.61, and her twin Christine Kerr '14 won the 200-yard freestyle in 1:52.62.
Katy Feng '14 beat all of Penn's athletes in the one-meter and three-meter diving competitions. Mary Van Metre '14 beat the Bulldogs in the 50-yard freestyle, and Christine Kerr and Danielle Kerr defeated all Penn swimmers in the 500-yard and 100-yard butterfly, respectively.
"It was one of the most challenging meets, definitely," diver Maddie McClenney '13 said. "We saw two of Yale's divers who were at the top of Ivies last year, so we saw what we'll have to do to compete against them this year. It's definitely doable, though."
The women's team also competed at home this weekend, defeating Vermont (8-5, 2-1 America East) on Sunday with ease and setting a pool record in the 800-meter freestyle relay. Christine Kerr, Danielle Kerr, Kirstin Hocheder '14 and Maddie Steiner '11 set a new record with a time of 7:36.81, easily beating the previous record of 7:46.42 set by Vermont two years ago.
The team had several other first-place finishes. Christine Kerr won the 1000-yard freestyle, 200-yard butterfly and the 500-yard freestyle, and Danielle Kerr won the 200-yard and the 100-yard freestyle. Charlotte Williams '13 won the 200-yard breaststroke and Van Metre won the 50-yard freestyle.
The Big Green also placed well in diving events during the meet, recording first-place finishes from Feng in both the one-meter and three-meter events. McClenney and Kate O'Brien '13 took second in the one-meter and three-meter events, respectively.
Both the men's and women's teams will now turn their attention to Princeton University, which they will face next Sunday.
