Crimson Moves to 5-0 on Season

The Harvard men’s swimming and diving team began the new year with a bang, defeating previously-unbeaten Navy 188-112 at Blodgett Pool Saturday. The Crimson, currently tied for first in the Ivy League with perennial rival Princeton, improved its record to 5-0 and 3-0 in the Ivy League.

The victory continued the momentum the Crimson established before the break, posting a 121-108 victory over Arizona State (0-3) on Dec. 19 at the Mona Plummer Aquatic Center in Tempe, Ariz.

Although Harvard was able to overcome strong Navy and Sun Devil teams, the Crimson was presented with the toll of a long winter break and looming exams.

“Like the rest of the team, I struggled from the training and from coming back after not being here for a while,” Guernsey said. “Exams are hitting, so it’s the time where we’ve got to buckle down and make sure we’re getting the work done that we need.”

Harvard coach Tim Murphy was pleased with his team’s win, however he also noted the need for hard work and improvement before Harvard’s next meet.

“We’ve got to train faster and train a little bit better than we have,” Murphy said. “We’re in a fairly good spot right now, but there’s a lot of work left to be done.”

HARVARD 188, NAVY 112

Harvard’s impressive victory was led by sophomore Zac Ranta, who has broken onto the Ivy diving scene this year. Qualifying for the NCAA A Division Championships, the Hales Corners, Wis. native also claimed first in both of the day’s diving events. Ranta posted a score of 296.47 in the 1-meter dive, surpassing the second-place finisher from Navy by over 60 points, and a remarkable 349.51 in the 3-meter dive.

Sophomore Henry Winslow followed Ranta in the 3-meter event, scoring 267.83 for a solid second-place finish. Winslow also placed third in the 1-meter dive.

The Crimson divers’ victories were matched in the pool, as Harvard claimed 11 of the day’s 16 events.

“We did pretty well,” co-captain Eric Lynch said. “We did a good job of stepping up and especially of just winning races.”

Harvard showed its strength in the backstroke events, dominating both the 100- and 200-meter swims. The Crimson swept the events and then some, capturing the first four places each time.

Sophomore Jordan Diekema placed first in both the 100- and 200- backstroke, with times of 50.67 and 1:52.01, respectively. Freshman Ian Mirisola, sophomore Derick Chui and freshman Rob Newell claimed the next three spots in the 100-meter event, with Mirisola and Chui swapping places in the 200-meter swim.

Junior Alex Meyer was another decisive force for Harvard, finishing first in both the 1650-meter freestyle and 500-meter freestyle. After staying neck-and-neck with Navy’s Erik Hunter for the first two-thirds of the 1650-meter event, Meyer was able to kick in and touch the wall in 15:40.46, ending a length ahead of his opponent.

The Crimson also placed first in both of the day’s relay events. Diekema, junior Simone Melillo, senior Bill Jones, and co-captain David Guernsey took the 200-meter medley relay in a time of 1:32.40. Winning the final event of the meet, the 400-meter medley relay team of Diekema, sophomore Will Heyburn, Jones, and Guernsey touched the wall in 3:07.24.

HARVARD 121, ARIZONA STATE 108

Jones proved to be the key to the Crimson’s narrow victory, posting 18 points in one day by winning the 50- and 100-meter butterfly events. The senior finished in times of 22.46 and 50.47, respectively.

Harvard also claimed the third through sixth spots in the 100 butterfly, as well as third and fourth in the 50-meter.

The Crimson nearly produced the same results in the 100-meter IM race, taking first as well as the third through fifth spots. Paced by sophomore Douwe Yntema, who finished first with a time of 53.73, Harvard also took the seventh-place spot with junior Tommy Gray rounding out the event with a time of 56.44.

Guernsey finished second in the 50-meter freestyle, falling behind Olympian Mohammed Madwa with a time of 21.58.

—Staff writer Alexandra J. Mihalek can be reached at ajmihalek@fas.harvard.edu.