Elizabethtown College’s swim team spent the first weekend of their semester competing against Washington College’s Shoremen and Shorewomen on Jan. 18, in Thompson Gymnasium’s Alumni Pool.
After celebrating the Etown seniors and playing an electric guitar rendition of the national anthem, the swim meet commenced with the women’s 400-yard medley relay. The Washington College athletes in lane three immediately developed a lead, with the Blue Jays almost closing the distance but to no avail.
Three seemed to be Washington College’s magic number during this swim meet. Event after event, Washington College swimmers in lane three built up huge leads. Several events ended with stark differences between first and second place.
However, the Blue Jays still put up a fight against Washington. Senior Blue Jay swimmer Joshua McQueen stayed ahead of the competition for most of the men’s 1000-yard freestyle. However, Shoreman senior Patrick Downes made it past McQueen during the last third of the event. McQueen responded by catching back up to Downes, making the event neck-and-neck in the final lap.
Both swimmers sped back towards the back end of the Alumni Pool, with no clear winner. Excited shouts from the audience filled the room.
Despite McQueen’s comeback, Downes didn’t let up and finished in 10:59.72, roughly half a second ahead of McQueen’s time of 11:00.10.
“Swimming my 1000 was amazing, I had such a close race and I could hear the parents stand up and start screaming on the bleachers as it was neck-and-neck into my last 50,” McQueen said. “I had a blast swimming against a fast school like Washington and was glad I got the opportunity to.”
The same situation nearly happened again later in the day. During the women’s 50-yard freestyle, Blue Jay senior Gracie Harding and Washington College first-year Kenzie Gorman remained even with each other for the entire event. The difference between Gorman and Harding was even smaller than it was between McQueen and Downes, with Gorman achieving a time of 25.55 and Harding getting a time of 25.58.
Additionally, the event wasn’t a complete wash for the Blue Jays, as they did manage to win in a handful of events. During the women’s 100-yard backstroke, Etown athletes junior Korney Green and senior Emma Sabalaske out-sped the Washington athletes. Green claimed the Blue Jays’ first win of the day.
Washington College still managed to come out on top despite the Jays’ efforts. The Etown team’s morale seems higher than ever, though.
“Being part of this team is such an amazing experience,” McQueen said. “The entire meet was such an amazing time and I will cherish it as the best senior meet ever!”
Both of Etown’s swim teams will be heading to the Landmark Conference at the Mangione Aquatic Center at Loyola University in Maryland, which starts Feb. 13.
