Blue Jays pull out thrilling 200 free relay to tie McDaniel

Results

ELIZABETHTOWN, Pa. -- Down nine points entering the final event Saturday afternoon, the equation was simple for the Elizabethtown men's swim team: win the 200-yard freestyle relay or lose the meet.

The Blue Jays rose to the occasion.

Alec Schneider, Kieran Koehler, Casey Marshall and David Foery put forth a season-best 1:31.76 to capture the relay by 0.78 seconds. Elizabethtown also took third in the event, giving it the necessary points to tie McDaniel, 125-125, on Senior Day at the Alumni Pool.

The relay capped a big afternoon for Kieran Koehler and Schneider, who each won three times.

Koehler and Schneider got help from Marshall and Tommy Kuhn to open the meet with a win in the 200 medley relay. The Blue Jays established their fastest mark of the winter with a 1:42.32 and got a 1-2 finish with the B Relay of Nick Petrella, Guillaume Gouronc, Ben Spangler and Tristan Koehler slipping past McDaniel's A Relay in 1:49.63.

E-town (4-3-1) maintained its early advantage throughout the meet, getting victories from Sam Hirshberg (200 backstroke), Kieran Koehler (200 breaststroke) and Schneider (50 freestyle) before the break.

Hirshberg swam 2:18.03 to lead a sweep of the top three spots for the Blue and Gray in the 200 back. Petrella and Kylar Harvey finished second and third, respectively. The Blue Jays also claimed a 1-2-3 finish in the 200 breast behind Koehler's season-best 2:25.75. Spangler was the runner-up in 2:28.19, just out-touching Gouronc, who swam a 2:28.30.

Schneider just missed becoming the first Elizabethtown swimmer to swim a sub 23-second 50 free since Ken Wiest in 2011. The freshman from Spring City, Pennsylvania, recorded a new PR with a 23.01, an improvement of more than two-tenths of a second over his former best this season.

The Green Terror (3-5-1) cut away at Elizabethtown's lead by winning all six individual events following the intermission. Paul Van Nevel was the catalyst for McDaniel's comeback, notching victories in the 100 free, 100 back and 500 free. The guests finally took the lead for the first time when Adam Halmy and Brandon Bond took the top two spots in the 100 individual medley, the meet's penultimate event.

Elizabethtown's win in the 200 free relay to avoid a loss came in its fastest time since Mark Wilson assumed coaching duties prior to the 2011-12 season. The 1:31.76 turned in Saturday was less than three seconds off the school record of 1:29.20 by Doug Hamsher, Derek Farrar, Kevin Urban and Joshua Luey at the 1997 MAC Championships.

Saturday's result marked the first dual meet tie in the men's program's 53-year history. The last Elizabethtown dual to end in a tie came on the women's side against Lycoming (131-131), Nov. 13, 2010. The women also split a meet at Susquehanna, Jan. 29, 2002.

Elizabethtown honored its 2016-17 senior class of Ben Cvach, Kieran Koehler, Jake Stonecipher and Ethan Weber with a small ceremony during Saturday's intermission.

The Blue Jays conclude the regular season next Friday evening with a dual at Frostburg State.

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Players Mentioned

David Foery: Free; 6' 0"; Junior

Guillaume Gouronc: Breast/IM; 6' 1"; Sophomore

Sam Hirshberg: Back/Sprint Free; 6' 0"; Sophomore

Kieran Koehler: Breast/Sprint Free; 6' 1"; Senior

Tristan Koehler: Sprint Free; 6' 1"; Sophomore

Tommy Kuhn: Fly/Free; 5' 10"; Sophomore

Nick Petrella: Back/Free; 6' 0"; Sophomore

Ben Spangler: IM/Breast/Free; 5' 9"; Sophomore

Jake Stonecipher: Distance Free/Fly/IM; 5' 6"; Senior

Ethan Weber: Fly/Free/Breast; 5' 10"; Senior

Players Mentioned

David Foery
: 6' 0"; Junior
: Free

Guillaume Gouronc
: 6' 1"; Sophomore
: Breast/IM

Sam Hirshberg
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: Back/Sprint Free

Kieran Koehler
: 6' 1"; Senior
: Breast/Sprint Free

Tristan Koehler
: 6' 1"; Sophomore
: Sprint Free

Tommy Kuhn
: 5' 10"; Sophomore
: Fly/Free

Nick Petrella
: 6' 0"; Sophomore
: Back/Free

Ben Spangler
: 5' 9"; Sophomore
: IM/Breast/Free

Jake Stonecipher
: 5' 6"; Senior
: Distance Free/Fly/IM

Ethan Weber
: 5' 10"; Senior
: Fly/Free/Breast