CAMBRIDGE, Mass. — Junior Albert Gwo raced his way to an individual title in the 50-yard freestyle to highlight day two for Columbia at the 2020 Ivy League Men's Swimming and Diving Championships at Blodgett Pool. The victory marked the Lions' first individual conference swimming title since 2015, and the first triumph in the event since 2011.
 
"Today was a lot of mixed emotions," said Columbia head coach Jim Bolster. "The swimming by Albert for the win was great, a new school record. I think he's trusting himself and the process and realizing it's all up to him. If he wants to get it done, he can, and his preparation has been great. He's really embraced all aspects of what it takes to be good and increased confidence in his training and work ethic.
 
After breaking both the school and pool records with a time of 19.32 in the morning's preliminary session, Gwo upheld his ranking to out-touch the field with a finals time of 19.37. Sophomore teammate Jonas Kistorp joined Gwo in the final, finished sixth overall with a time of 19.96.
 
Another highlight came in the final event of the evening, as Columbia turned in a silver-medal finish in the 200 freestyle relay with a school-record mark of 1:18.50, using the grouping of Gwo (19.54), Nian-Guo Liu (19.50), Kevin Dang (19.96) and Kistorp (19.50).
 
First-year diver Ben Blizard gave the Lions its top finish on the 1-meter springboard, registering a 254.80 in the consolation final to place 13th overall. Fellow first-year Casey Fellows was 20th (253.60) and senior Shinya Kondo took 24th (240.75).
 
"A really solid day for the divers," commented Columbia diving coach Scott Donie. "A very strong debut by Ben and everyone scored crucial points for the team. Looking forward to the 3-meter event tomorrow."
 
The 200 IM saw senior Cole Stevens represent the Light Blue and White in the 'A' final, notching an eighth-place finish with a finals time of 1:49.87 after posting a lifetime best 1:46.80 in the prelims. Liu would have taken part in the championship race, however he was disqualified in the prelims of the event for a false start.
 
After tying for eighth in the morning prelims with a time of 4:23.45, junior Jack Scanlon was the Lions' leader in the 500 free, going a 4:24.68 in the 'B' final to take 12th in the event overall.
 
Prior to the evening session, Liu swam in a time trial of the 100 breaststroke, re-setting the school record with a time of 52.86.

"We've still got some work to do, and hopefully we'll come out tomorrow with a bit of vengeance and swim well," added Bolster.
 
The Ivy League Championships continue Friday, with the preliminary session kicking off at 11 a.m. ET and finals beginning at 6 p.m.
 
Fans can catch all the action live on ESPN+, with live results available here.
 
Team Scores
1. Harvard, 489
2. Princeton, 450
3. Yale, 333.5
4. Brown, 318.5
5. Columbia, 297
6. Cornell, 291.5
7. Penn, 273.5
8. Dartmouth, 237
 
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.