Coming off from a solid run of success, the Cardinal swim teams took home victories from their face-offs against Colby and Bowdoin over the weekend. After both squads finished with a win and a loss each in three-way competition with Conn College and Clark over the previous weekend, the Cardinals refused to settle for a split decision. The men annihilated the Polar Bears 206.5-73.5 and came from behind late in the meet to steal a dramatic victory from the Mules 148-138. Meanwhile, the ladies, buoyed by another record-breaking performance from Amanda Shapiro ’08, topped Bowdoin 159-137 and Colby 152-135.

For the Cardinal men, Ben Byers ’07 continued his unbeaten run in the distance freestyle events [500 and 1650], extending his streak to 14 straight, while consistent Captain Josh Tanz ’06 put together another solid day, highlighted by victories in the 100 and 200 butterfly. The story of the meet was not about individuals though, as the men put together an unprecedented charge late in the meet to secure their two-win day. Tanz’s strong swim in the 100 fly was supported by second and third place finishes from fellow Captain Tom Cleveland ’05 and Matt Donne ’07, picking up a huge sweep and kick-starting the points rally for the Cards late in the meet. The Cardinals had to hold on to their intensity through a break for diving competition and come out strong in both of the final two races to get the win. The team exceeded expectations with a 1-2-3 finish in the 200 IM and a 1-2 finish in the 200 free relay, as the men put together their best three races as a team to close the meet.

“We had to win out to beat Colby,” Tanz said. “Even with the sweeps, we needed to take the 200 [free relay] to win the meet, and we put together a 1-2 finish to slam the door. It was a huge finish.”

Byers delivered a first place finish in the 200 IM to contribute to the late Cardinal surge.

“We struggled a little early, but we really came back strong [against Colby], and it was truly as pumped up as I’ve seen this team get,” Byers said. No one can get you ready to go like the people you suffer with every day, so when someone asks what effect Amanda’s [Shapiro] record breaking or my streak may have on team morale, I think our success is actually a credit to what effect team morale has on us.“

Shapiro continued to build on her outstanding freshman campaign as she set new marks in two individual events on a day that featured strong performances from a handful of Cardinal women. Until Saturday, Shapiro owned every breaststroke record on the board, with one exception: the 200yd. distance. That time is now past. Posting a time of 2:27.13, Shapiro extended her dominance in the breaststroke events and now holds four individual and one relay record, totaling five in this her freshman year. Shapiro also broke her own mark in the 200 IM, blistering the pool in 2:12.43, to take a surprising second pace finish in the event.

”I don’t go into every meet wanting to break another record,“ Shapiro said. ”I go into every meet wanting to improve on my own personal times and perform for the team. Although swimming is very individual, we compete as a team, and the team is always my priority. So far, this season has surpassed all my expectations. I never expected to swim as well as I have.“

While Shapiro’s record breaking continues to be a top story, the lady Cardinals are a strong team top to bottom, and have continued to demonstrate just that. Stephanie Lasby ’06 put in an especially strong effort for the Cardinals on Saturday, competing in what her teammates considered among the tougher event schedules in swimming [1650 free / 200 fly / 500 freexs]. Lasby finished the 1650 in 18:30.50, a season best and good enough for first, only to jump back in less than an hour later for the strength and endurance testing 200 fly. She managed a strong second place showing, coming in less than a second behind Cardinal fly specialist Kate Krems ’08. Krems subsequently swam the 100 fly in a personal best 59.92 seconds to take top honors. Diane Chen ’08 also had a strong day, setting personal bests in both the 1650 free and the 200 IM. With the score still close entering the 200 free relay, the Cards nailed down the wins with a first place finish from the quartet of Eliza Jones ’07, Mikki Columbus ’05, Lauren Goldman ’08, and Joanna Tice ’07.

Both teams now stand at 6-3 as they prepare for a match-up with the U.S. Coast Guard Academy on Saturday, February 5th.

”Coast Guard should be a fun way to end the regular season,“ Krems said. ”We’ll all be focused on winning that meet, but in the back of our minds we are focused on NESCACs and performing well there. That’s where it all matters the most.“