Penn wins by small margin

Penn's men's swimming team earned its expected victory on Saturday against Brown, but it was not the lopsided victory that was forecasted. The Quakers' 125-112 victory, which moved them to 3-2 in Ivy League competition, can be attributed to their depth, both in quality and numbers. After bringing just seven swimmers to last year's dual meet, a 134-83 demolition by Penn, the Bears bumped their numbers up to a dozen this year and made it much closer. One can only wonder what Brown might have accomplished if they had the 23-person roster with which the Quakers entered Providence. "They gave us a great meet," Penn junior co-captain Colin Robinson said. "They didn't have the depth, but the guys they had were ready to swim fast. Our victory can be attributed to team depth, and our second and third guys in each race." It was the diving squad's dominance which was also key to the Quakers' success. Filled with mostly freshmen and sophomores, the diving squad is young but talented. Quakers Kyle Goldbacher and Matt Gries took the top two spots in both the one-meter and three-meter events over a Bears diving team which traditionally has been one of the elite league teams. The swim races were a much closer competition. Penn was prepared to face tough challenges from Brown's top swimmer in each race, but the undermanned Bears team proved capable of throwing two strong entrants per race into the pool. Brown came away with first-place finishes in six-of-nine individual races, including a one-two finish in one of the Quakers' specialties, the 200-yard butterfly." "The races were pretty evenly split. They won their share, that's what kept it close," Robinson said. "They had two good guys in each event. Early on they had the momentum. I thought we responded real well. Jeff Brown, as usual, had a superb meet. Guys came through when they needed to." Penn assistant coach Mike Schnur pointed to freshman Jon Maslow's victory in the 100-yard freestyle as the key win for the Quakers. Brown led by one point at the midpoint of the meet and swept the top-two spots in the 200-butterfly in the proceeding race. It was Maslow's victory, Schnur said, that stole the Bears' momentum away. "Jon Maslow's victory turned the tide," Schnur said. "His win was convincing, he was way ahead of everyone else. It gave us the momentum." After weeks of winter training with relatively little rest, the Quakers were undoubtedly somewhat tired for their race, but the team wasn't ready to blame their unspectacular performance on the training, travel, or Brown's uniquely sloped pool which includes lanes that are as shallow as four feet. "You're always tired after two tough weeks, but it's no excuse," Robinson said. "They swam fast, we didn't swim what we are capable of. The pool didn't have any effect either. It's like being tired. In the heat of a dual meet it doesn't matter." Despite Penn's unexceptional performance, Schnur expects the meet to serve as a confidence builder for the rest of the season. He pointed to the team's fatigue and their ability to overcome it during the victory as positive signals for the rest of the season.

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