Penn men’s swimming and diving’s freshman prodigy Matthew Fallon added to his already impressive list of accolades with an NCAA Championships performance over the weekend worthy of All-American honors.
Fallon competed in the 100 yard and 200 yard breaststroke events during the championships in Atlanta on March 25 and 26, categories in which he was ranked in the top 12 nationally throughout the college swimming season. The Warren, N.J. native built on his season-long success with top-ten finishes in both the 100 and 200 breast events.
During Friday night’s races, Fallon finished the 100 breast in 10th place with times of 51.51 in qualifying and 51.57 in the final. Both times were close to breaking Penn’s record time of 51.45 seconds for the 100 breast, set by Fallon earlier this season. While he didn’t finish on the podium, Fallon did secure an honorable mention to earn his first All-American honors as a collegiate swimmer.
On Saturday, Fallon took to the pool for the 200 breast event. With a time of 1:49.16, Fallon finished third in the event, behind only Leon Marchand and Max McHugh of Arizona State and Minnesota, respectively. That podium finish helped the true freshman secure first team All-American honors, something no Quaker has done since Mark Andrew did so in 2019.
His performance at the NCAA Championships suggests a career arc similar to Andrew’s, with frequent broken records and annual trips to the nation’s most prestigious collegiate swimming event. But Fallon’s success traces back to before his time at Penn.
In high school, Fallon won national championships in the 100 breast, 200 breast, and 400 yard individual medley events. He also earned a top-ten finish at the 2020 Olympic Trials, something that becomes even more impressive considering he was the top finisher in any event by someone 18 years or younger. Fallon is also a member of the United States National Team.
This weekend’s finish caps off a freshman campaign that saw Fallon break numerous records and become one of Penn's best swimmers. With three years of eligibility remaining, Fallon has plenty of time to continue to establish himself as a repeat record-breaker in the pool.
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