Men's Swimming & Diving Succumbs to Navy, 158-131

Friday, February 5

Annapolis, Md.

2 p.m.

Columbia

131

158

Navy

Men?s Swimming & Diving Brings in 18 Fresh Faces

Men's Swimming & Diving Succumbs to Navy, 158-131

2/5/2010 12:00:00 AM | Men's Swimming and Diving

By: Columbia University Athletics

NEW YORK – In a meet that matched up two former EISL rivals in Annapolis, Md., the Columbia men's swimming & diving team fell to Navy, 158-131.

The meet, which took place in a short-course meter (SCM) pool, started with the 200 SCM medley relay, and saw Columbia win the event by just a touch. The Lion squad of Johnny Bailey, Eric Tang, Bruno Esquen and Adam Powell won with a time of 1:44.84, just ahead of the Midshipmen's top team, who came in at 1:44.90.

But Navy answered with 1-2-3 sweeps in the 800 SCM free, the 200 SCM free and the 100 SCM back, vaulting the Midshipmen ahead in the point standings. The first Lion to score points after the relay was senior Eric Tang, who took second in the 100 SCM breast, with a time of 1:04.69. Junior Adam Powell had a win for Columbia in the 50 SCM free, as he won the event with a time of 23.08. Powell is now 9-0 in the event. Powell also had a third place finish in the 100 SCM free, coming in at 52.99.

First-year Jason Collazo followed Powell's win in the 50 free up with another win for the Lions, in the 1m dive. Collazo took first with a final score of 289.95. Collazo earned valuable points for Columbia in the 3m dive, as he took second in the point totals, with 317.03.

Tang was a multiple point scorer for the Lions, as he finished second in the 200 SCM breaststroke, with a time of 2:22.37. With Navy well ahead in the standings at this point in the meet, the Midshipmen made the remainder of their races exhibition, giving the Lions the top three spots in every event. Sophomore Bruno Esquen won the 100 SCM fly in 56.90, senior Darren Pagan earned top points in the 200 SCM IM in 2:13.44, and the relay squad of Patrick Dougherty, Mitchell Phillips, Jordan Kobb and Powell took the top spot in the 400 SCM free relay, in 3:37.30.

With the loss, the Lions now stand at 4-5 in dual meets this season. Up next, Columbia will end its season with a double-header next weekend, taking on two Ivy League foes in as many days. Friday, February 12, the Lions will take on Princeton in Princeton, at 7 p.m., before returning to Uris Pool for the last dual meet of the season, hosting Dartmouth on Senior Day, Saturday, February 13 at 3 p.m.