PRINCETON, NJ -- Jonas Kistorp set a Big Al meet record in the 50 free with a winning time of 19.76 as the Columbia men's swim team completed the first day of its winter championship meet, hosted by league rival Princeton University.

"Today was a good start, we had some really good swims," noted head coach Jim Bolster. "The focus of the meet is championship experience. We had great relay swims in addition to great individual races, especially Kistorp in the 50 free."

The Lions' team of Kistorp, Andy Huang, Hayden Liu, and Thomas Shepanzyk garnered a sixth place finish in the 200 free relay with a time of 1:20.81. Accomplanied by rookie Demirkan Demir, Huang, Kistorp, and Shepanzyk earned another sixth place finish, this time in the 400 medley relay.

Columbia's male and female divers competed at Big Al, showcasing the Lions' talent on day one. Nicholas Leavell grabbed sixth off the one meter with 284.45 points for the men while Alice Diakova earned fifth in the same event in the women's competition (277.60). Teammate Macy Pine followed close behind in eighth (261.14).

"There is a very strong field of divers here," noted diving coach Scott Donie. " We are really proud of how everyone competed. Not everyone was able to compete today, but we will be back at full strength tomorrow."

The Lions resume competition Saturday morning. Prelims are scheduled for 10:00 a.m. while finals follow at 6:00 p.m..

For the latest on the Columbia men's swimming and diving program, follow @CULionsMSD and @CULionsDiving on Instagram and Twitter, and on the web at GoColumbiaLions.com.