Colgate’s men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams split their meets with Binghamton University on Senior Day at Lineberry Natatorium last Saturday. The women crushed the Bearcats, 216-82 in their biggest win of the year, while the men lost its meet in the last race, 158-136. The following day, both squads faced the University of Massachusetts at Joseph Rogers Pool in Amherst, Massachusetts on January 24. The women Raiders edged UMass 171-127, while the Minutemen defeated the men’s team, 188-95.

The Lady Raiders have been remarkably successful and boast a perfect 8-0 record in dual meets. The women proved that their early season success had certainly not been a fluke. The Raiders absolutely dominated the meet against Binghamton, taking first place in 14 out of 16 events. Senior Beverly Walker earned victories in four events: the 200 medley relay, 100 back, 200 back and the 800 free relay. Seniors Ashley Bottger and Emily Murphy were also quadruple winners at the meet.

In addition to the great senior leadership, the Raiders also earned four other first place finishes from first-years Becky Fisher, Erica Derlath, Jenna Daly and sophomore Erin McGraw.

The women continued their winning ways against UMass. Last Saturday’s win was particularly sweet for Ashley Bottger and Erica Derlath because they each set Joseph Rogers Pool records.

Derlath established the new Rogers Pool standard in the 1650 free style by recording a time of 17:13.32. The former record was 17:30, which was set by Anne Dettloff of UMass in 2000. Bottger shattered Central Connecticut State’s Jaime Crowley record in the 100 freestyle, which had stood since January 2005.

“The 100 free yesterday was particularly special to me,” Bottger said. “It always feels good to leave your mark as a swimmer in another team’s pool.”

Bottger also led a one-two Colgate punch with senior Lisa Marchi with a winning time of 51.96. Marchi touched in with a time of 53.38.

Colgate also received 10 other first place finishes, including five top-two finishes. The foursome of senior Beverly Walker, senior Emily Murphy, Marchi and Bottger combined to achieve a 3:57.74 to win the 400 medley relay, while first-year Emily Peck, Walker, Murphy and Bottger won the 200 free-relay with a winning time of 1:36.71. The 200 free relay also established a new pool record, breaking the former record of 1:38.17 set by UMass in December 1999.

Although fighting valiantly, the men’s swimming and diving team fell to Binghamton in a tightly contested meet. It took a victory in the final event, the 400 free relay, to catapult Binghamton to victory.

Despite the loss, sophomore Tucker Gniewek put forth a tremendous effort, winning three of four events for the Raiders. First-year Costas Hadjipateras also provided a first place effort for the Raiders, as he triumphed in the 200 fly. First-year Casey Powers and sophomore Devon Healy placed second and third respectively, right behind Hadjipateras in the event.

The Raiders did not fare as well in the subsequent meet against UMass, falling to 1-7 on the year. However, sophomore Devon Healy’s double-victory performance was a major success for the team. Healy earned the top spot in two of Colgate’s three total victories as he led a one-two effort with first-year Casey Powers in the 1650. Healy posted a winning time of 16:47.83, while Powers touched in with a 17:00.13. Healy also finished first in the 200 IM with a time of 2:00.21.

The foursome of first-years Pat White, Costas Hadjipateras, Teddy Perley and senior Dan Lathrop secured a time of 1:29.05 en route to receiving first place points in the meet’s final race, the 200 freestyle relay.

The men also tallied two second-place finishes against UMass. First-year Doug Parks swam a 2:01.67 in the 200 fly, while sophomore Tucker Gniewek earned second place in the 50 freestyle with a time of 21.83.

Sophomore Devon Healy remains optimistic for his team’s future success.

“We are definitely excited for the future of this team and I’m not worried about how we are performing,” he said. “We still believe we are heading in the right direction in terms of our preparation for Patriot League Championships.”

On Saturday, both teams will conclude their regular season schedules at West Point in a tri-meet with Army and Patriot League rival Lafayette.