c/o Wesleyan Athletics

The women’s swimming and diving team concluded their season by placing ninth out of the 11 total teams at the 2022 NESCAC Championships. Hosted by Colby College, the Championships were conducted over the weekend of Feb. 10 to Feb. 13 and saw the Cardinals get 534.5 points. Due to the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, this year’s return to competition was more competitive than ever, with many of the Cardinals putting up great performances.

Mengmeng Gibbs ’22 made it to the finals of the 50-meter breaststroke and recorded a season-best time of 29.93 seconds to earn sixth place out of 44 competitors in the event. Gibbs nearly placed in the 100 breast later in the weekend, missing the finals by just two spots as she finished 10th out of 45 swimmers with a time of 1:05.62. Gibbs was enthusiastic about her performance.

“My favorite part of the weekend was making it into the A final of the 50 breaststroke on Friday,” Gibbs said. “Swimming in the A final is always super exciting and high-energy, and it felt like my career on Wes swim and dive had, in a way, come full circle. I didn’t expect to make the A final this year and I was super surprised to find out that I had because the meet has gotten so much faster than it was when I was a [first year] and placed third in that event.” 

The team’s series of impressive times did not stop there. Ainsley Dodson ’25 set a new Wesleyan record in the 200 individual medley as she finished with a time of 2:07.33 to earn 11th place out of 50 competitors. Dodson replaced the previous Wesleyan record from Zoe Kerrich ’18 (2:08.20), which had stood for almost four years. 

Amanda McHugh ’22 finished 11th out of 48 swimmers in the 50-meter fly with a time of 26.19 seconds and placed 14th of 52 in the 100-meter fly with a time of 57.65 seconds. Olivia Stevenson ’25 was the top distance swimmer for the Cardinals and finished the 1000-meter free in 10:31.77, earning 14th place.

Other notable results from the Cardinals included the 200-meter free relays, as Sarah Schou ’23, Gibbs, Jadyn George ’25, and Izzy Pennington ’24 took ninth out of 22 teams with a time of 1:37.54. Two more Wesleyan relay groups performed well, as the 400-meter medley team of Pennington, Gibbs, McHugh, and Schou swam together for a time of 3:53.25, which placed them ninth. Later, in the 400-meter free, it was Schou, Gibbs, Bella Kellner ’24, and George who placed 10th with a time of 3:32.90. McHugh pointed to the relays as a highlight of her experience at the championship meet.

“My favorite part of NESCACs is always the relays,” McHugh said. “It’s so fun to do a race with your other teammates as well as cheer each other on. The team has been training hard since October with NESCACs as the final championship meet to end the season. We’ve practiced six days a week, sometimes twice a day, and have had several dual meets to prepare us for the final competition. I feel grateful that swimming is a sport that can easily adhere to social distance guidelines.”

Victoria Carroll ’24 joined McHugh with a solid showing in the 50-meter fly at the Championships, placing 17th out of 48 swimmers with a season’s-best time of 26.23 seconds. In the 50m free, it was Schou who led Wesleyan with a time of 24.61 seconds that earned her a 14th place finish out of over 70 swimmers.

In the one-meter dive, Zoe Paglia ’23 continued her strong season, narrowly missing the finals with a 10th place finish and a score of 329.00. In the three-meter dive, Talia Lanckton ’22 led the Cardinals with an 11th place result and score of 334.45.

In spite of an almost two-year hiatus, the women’s swimming and diving team thrived with their best performances at the event. McHugh noted that spending time with the Wesleyan team was the highlight of her season. 

“As a senior, it is definitely bittersweet to end my swim career,” McHugh said. “Especially after not having a season last year, I went into my final season trying to enjoy and savor every moment of it and feel grateful to be doing this sport. It really helped me just have fun racing and being with my teammates instead of focusing too much on the stressful aspects. Although it’s sad my swimming days are behind me, I am happy to have had such an incredible experience with Wes swim and dive.”

Chase Williams can be reached at chwilliams@wesleyan.edu.