NEW YORK — The Columbia men's swimming and diving program will open the 2018-19 campaign this weekend, hitting the road to take on Army on Friday at 5 p.m. ET, before heading to Philadelphia to open Ivy League competition at Penn on Saturday at 1 p.m. The diving portion of Saturday's meet at Penn will begin at 12:15.
 
The Lions look to build on a terrific 2017-18 season which saw Columbia post an impressive 8-2 record in dual meets en route to a fourth-place finish at the 2018 Ivy League Championships. Head coach Jim Bolster, who is entering his 34th year at the helm, was named the 2018 Ivy League Coach of the Year.
 
Sophomore diver Jonathan Suckow returns after a highly decorated rookie season. The Geneva, Switzerland, native swept the Ivy diving titles and was the Karl B. Michael High Point Diver of the Meet. He went on to post Columbia's highest finish on 3-meter at the NCAA Championships in nearly two decades, finishing 25th with a score of 340.00.
 
In addition to Suckow, Columbia returns three swimmers who advanced to individual championship finals at the conference meet a season ago, including junior Cole Stevens (6th, 200-yard backstroke), senior Shane Brett (3rd, 200 butterfly; 5th, 400 IM; 8th, 200 IM) and junior Zach Pear (5th, 200 fly).
 
SCOUTING ARMY
Army enters Friday's with two wins already under its belt. The Black Knights opened their season on Oct. 12 with a win over UMass before defeating UConn on Oct. 27.
 
The Lions have earned victories over Army in each of the last two seasons, including a 168-129 triumph last season. Army went on to post an 8-3 record in dual meets in 2017-18.
 
SCOUTING PENN
Penn wrapped up the 2017-18 campaign with a 6-4 record in dual meets, going 2-4 against the Ancient Eight. The Quakers placed fifth overall at the Ivy League Championships.
 
The Quakers last victory over Columbia came in 2015, as the Lions have won back-to-back meets in the series. Last season, Columbia earned a 168-129 season-opening win in New York.
 
ON DECK
Columbia continues its road stretch next weekend, traveling to New Haven, Connecticut, to face off against Yale on Saturday, Nov. 10. The meet is set for a 1 p.m. start.
 
For the latest on the Columbia men's swimming and diving program, follow @ColumbiaMenSwim on Twitter, @ColumbiaMenSwimming and @ColumbiaDiving on Instagram, and on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.