Stevens Men Record 17 NCAA Cuts in Winning ECAC Swimming and Diving Title
HOBOKEN, N.J. (December 6, 2010) – The Stevens Institute of Technology men’s swimming team won the ECAC title for the second time on Sunday, finishing with an astonishing team total of 2,003.50 points. SUNY Geneseo placed second with just 1,212 points. Sophomore John Hu was named the Swimmer of the Meet after earning a championship-high 128 points. Sophomore Alex Benham (114), senior Evan Wilson (113), senior captain Daniel Pecoraro (106.50), freshman Tyler Hessler (103), sophomore Greg Charriez (98), and senior captain Matthew Preedy (89) were all in the top-10 as the Ducks recorded 17 NCAA cuts at the three-day event.
Friday (Day 1)
Things opened with the team of Charriez, Preedy, sophomore Daniel Munt, and Hessler combining to turn in a 1:33.25 in the 200-yard medley relay, breaking the previous school-record by 1.97 seconds and notching the teams’ first NCAA B-cut of the meet.
Benham and Wilson placed second and third in the 1,650-yard freestyle and both athletes carded B-cuts with times of 15:55.21 and 16:06.55, respectively.
Saturday (Day 2)
The Ducks had a huge second day at the Nassau Aquatics Center, opening up a 449.5 point lead over second place SUNY Geneseo. In total, Stevens swimmers recorded 12 NCAA cuts on Saturday, including a pair of A-cuts from Hu.
In the morning session, Pecoraro recorded an NCAA B-cut and took second place with his time of 1:50.88 in the 200-yard backstroke. The time was also a new school-record, destroying his own previous best by almost four seconds. Freshmen Shawn Hanak and Nick Noga finished third and fifth with their times of 1:56.75 and 1:58.51, respectively.
Freshman Joe Huyett clocked the Ducks’ second NCAA B-cut of the day, touching the wall at 46.70 in the 100-yard freestyle and taking fourth. Hessler (47.00) and Pecoraro (47.12) were fifth and sixth. In the 200-yard butterfly, Hu notched Stevens’ first NCAA A-cut of the year, turning in a 1:48.90 and winning the event. His time was also good for a school-record, and junior Matthew Smith was second in the 200-fly with a 1:55.68. Freshman Jake Witter and Charriez were fifth and sixth in the same event.
Hu and Wilson finished first and second in the 200-yard breaststroke with times of 2:04.55 and 2:06.58, respectively. Both times were good for NCAA B-cuts and Hu’s was good for a new school-record by more than four seconds.
In the final event of the morning session, the team of Wilson, Benham, sophomore Derek Smith (Boise, Idaho), and Pecoraro teamed to win the 800-yard freestyle by more than nine seconds, notching a B-cut and setting a new school-record in the process with a time of 6:49.95.
The Ducks opened Saturday’s evening session with a second-place finish in the 200-yard freestyle relay, carding a 1:24.72. Charriez, Hanak, Hessler, and Noga finished second, third, sixth, and seventh in the 100-yard backstroke with times of 53.03, 53.41, 53.97, and 55.32, respectively.
In the 200-yard freestyle, Pecoraro and Benham both recorded NCAA B-cuts, finishing second and third with times of 1:41.62 and 1:41.75. Hessler placed fourth with a 1:48.41. Freshmen Joshua Hanein and Brian Ginebaugh went two-three in the 100-yard breaststroke with times of 59.13 and 59.42, while Preedy placed fifth with a time of 59.91. Munt was the Ducks’ top finisher in the 100-yard butterfly, clocking a 54.74 and placing fourth, while Charriez took home sixth with a time of 54.23.
In the final event of the day, Hu earned another A-cut in winning the 400-yard individual medley. The sophomore finished in school-record time of 3:56.05**, while Wilson tallied a B-cut with a 4:02.93 in taking second. Benham was third in the same event, also recording an NCAA B-cut with his 4:07.36.
Sunday (Day 3)
Stevens started the final day of competition with a win in the 400-yard medley relay, notching a school-record and B-cut time of 3:26.69. Benham took first in the 500-yard freestyle with a 4:33.59, which was good for a B-cut as Pecoraro (4:41.57) and freshman Conor Arcuri (4:48.19) finished third and fourth.
Hessler was the Ducks’ top finisher in the 50-yard freestyle, touching at 21.24 and placing second, while Huyett was sixth (21.57), Preedy was seventh (21.66), and junior Carl Nagle was eighth (21.74). Hu tallied a B-cut in the 200-yard individual medley, turning in a 1:52.30 and winning the event. Wilson touched at 1:54.87 and was third.
In the final event of the championships, the team of Huyett, Pecoraro, Hessler, and Preedy placed second in the 400-yard freestyle relay with a time of 3:06.35.
Individual NCAA Cuts
A-cuts – Hu (200-fly, 400-IM)
B-cuts – Benham (1,650-free, 200-free, 400-IM, 500-free); Hu (200-breaststroke, 200-IM); Wilson (1,650-free, 200-breaststroke, 400-IM); Pecoraro (200-back, 200-free); Huyett (100-free)
Relay NCAA Cuts
B-cuts – 200-medley, 800-free, 400-medley
**Note - John Hu's time in the 400-IM (3:56.05) qualified him for the US Nationals this summer. The sophomore is also a little more than one second away from qualifying for the US Olympic Trials.