In their first meet of the season, Columbia Men’s and Women’s Swim Teams hosted a “swimmage” against Fordham on Saturday, November 2 at the Percy Uris Natatorium.

Columbia began the season with a strong start: both the Men’s and Women’s teams won 13 out of their 14 events, outperforming Fordham. As a lifeguard, I got to work and watch the meet. Getting paid to watch the swim teams compete definitely beats lifeguarding during open recreation.

I arrived just a bit late, but when I got to Uris there was already energy and excitement in the chlorine-filled air. The pool deck was buzzing with swimmers preparing for the first meet of the season; for a few, it was their first swim meet ever at Columbia. 

The meet opened with the Men’s 200-yard medley relay, where the Lions placed first with a time of 1:30.73. The team was led by Tristan Pragnell, Demir Demirkan, Brian Lee, and Zion James. The Women’s team also won their 200-yard medley relay, led by Emily Wang, Ashley Hu, Anthea Wong, and Sally Ma with a time of 1:44.86. 

First years performed well at their first Columbia meet. On the Men’s team, Gian Santos shined, placing first in the 1000 yard freestyle (yes, that is indeed 40 laps) with a time of 9:24.45 and in the 200 yard IM with a time of 1:51.66. Lucas Zhang also won the 100 yard butterfly with a time of 49.97. For the Women’s team, Ashley Hong placed first in the 100 yard breaststroke, clocking at 1:05.65 and Jilly MacNamara won the 500 yard freestyle with a time of 5:05.64.

My view from the guard stand was often compromised as the swimmers lined up in support to cheer on their fellow teammates; they were all incredibly supportive of one another.

Closing out the meet was the 400 yard freestyle relay where the Women’s team, led by Allison Martin, Mia Avansino, Isabel Lee, and Sally Ma, finished first with a time of 3:29:98, beating Fordham by 3.63 seconds. This event was the only event the Men’s team did not win, instead placing second with a time of 3:10.66, about 5 seconds behind Fordham. This team was led by Ian Choi, Sam Eckert, Zion James, and Lucas Canteros-Paz.

I was amazed as the Lions displayed speed and strength at their first meet of the season in preparation for the Ivy League. Both teams will host UPenn on Friday, November 8 for their Ivy League opener, with the Men competing at 1pm and the Women at 5pm. 

Header image via Bwarchives

Guard Stand view via Author