M. Swim coasts to easy win

Swarthmore and Johns Hopkins are both Division III schools. The comparison ends there. Unlike John Hopkins, which put up a strong fight earlier in the season before eventually falling to the Penn men's swimming team, Swarthmore was obliterated by the Quakers, 128-72, Tuesday. Penn (6-4, 3-4 EISL) placed first in 10 of the 11 events. "The meet went well," freshman Eric Zamborsky said. "We knew we were going to win. We just had fun with it." The Quakers rolled over the Garnet in event after event. Only a spirited effort in the 100-yard breaststroke by Swarthmore was able to stave off the complete sweep. Both Penn and the Garnet, with a victory for the Quakers nearly a given before the meet began, used this meet as a learning experience. Both teams experimented by placing swimmers in unfamiliar events. Tuesday's meet was the most the Quakers have experimented to date. "When you put someone in their second event, you receive information for the future," Penn coach Kathy Lawlor-Gilbert said. "On the men's side, I saw some people swim strokes that they normally don't in the individual medley." Penn freshman Andy Zamborsky, who is usually a sprinter, tried the 500-yard freestyle. The result was a third-place finish behind two fellow Quakers, juniors Jim McGinnis and Tom Swift. For Penn, freshman sensation Jeff Brown sparkled once again as he set a pool record at Swarthmore in the 1,650 freestyle with a time of 15:52.13. The impressive showing for Brown should solidify a top seeding for him at the Easterns. "Jeff Brown had a strong swim at this time in the year in the mile," Lawlor-Gilbert said. "He gets stronger every time." In addition to Brown, who beat his nearest competitor by over three minutes, freshman Ken Fletcher placed first in both 200 freestyle and the 100 fly. Freshman John Ternus mirrored Fletcher's individual double-win success, placing first in the 50 freestyle and the 200 individual medley. The coach was particularly impressed by the performances of sophomore Geoff Munger, Brown and freshman Jon Mishkin in the backstroke. Munger and Brown, who usually swim freestyle, performed admirably in uncharted waters placing first and second, respectively. Tuesday's meet, with the win nearly conceded to the Quakers, gave Penn a chance to experiment and gain experience for this young and rapidly improving team. "We have two more dual meets," Lawlor-Gilbert said. "I think the more often a swimmer or diver gets in, he gains in conditioning both mentally and physically."