Swim and dive sweeps UMass in first dual meet

The Boston University swimming and diving teams got off to a fast start Saturday at the Competition Pool, as both the men and women defeated the University of Massachusetts-Amherst in their first meets of the year.
Led by 10 first-place finishes, the Terrier women secured a 148-93 victory, and the men’s wins in five events allowed BU to thwart the Minutemen, 134-109.
BU coach Bill Smyth said he was pleased with his teams’ performances, calling it ‘the best start we’ve had in an opening meet since I’ve been a coach [at BU].”
The Terriers came out with energy, setting the tone early with a first-place finish in the women’s 4×400-yard medley relay. Sophomores Sarah Doersam, Kirsten Tullis and Maria McIntyre and freshman Kristen Connors earned the top spot with a time of 3:56.78.
Smyth said he was impressed with Tullis’ performance.
‘[Her] relay swims were one of the big highlights individually for the women,’ Smyth said.
The highlights continued for the fourth-year coach on the men’s side as sophomores Bryon Kallert, Kyle Ernst, Matt Rickett and freshman Sam Weinstein were able to eke out a victory in the 4×400-yard medley relay, clocking in at 3:29.08.
Second and third-place finishes in the men’s 1000-yard freestyle, coupled with a first-place finish from freshman Jackson Hill (1:45.43) in the 200-yard freestyle, helped BU retain its slim lead over the Minutemen.
However, it was not until junior Arik Seiler (1:55.36), Ernst (1:58.50) and sophomore Peter Lo (2:01.31) posted a 1-2-3 finish in the men’s 200-yard individual medley that the Terriers were able to secure some breathing room.
Kallert continued his impressive afternoon, collecting a victory in the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 1:54.74. After that win, the men pulled off yet another sweep ‘-‘- this time in the 200-yard breaststroke, where Ernst, Lo and junior Tyson Slesnick captured the top three spots. The men capped off the meet with a win in the 400-yard freestyle relay to put UMass away.
The women were in firm control of the competition for much of the meet. In the wake of their first-place finish in the 400-yard medley relay, the Terriers dominated the 1000-yard freestyle with freshman Amanda Schmitz (10:36.45), sophomore Clara Van Allen (10:38.90) and junior Lisa Young (10:41.58) claiming first, second and third, respectively.
Senior Eve Kinsella led the BU women with top finishes in the 200-yard individual medley and the 100-yard freestyle, while sophomore Andrea Doersam’s third-place showing (2:14.81) helped secure another BU sweep. It also bested her previous career mark.’
‘I thought [Andrea Doersam’s] lifetime best swims in her events were spectacular and reflective of the hard work she’s put into her training over the last six months,’ Smyth said.
In the deep end of the pool, senior Andre Watson led the men’s BU diving team, garnering a first-place finish on the one-meter board with a score of 321.38 and taking second on the three-meter board. Senior Tess Waresmith swept the women’s one-meter and three-meter boards with scores of 288.90 and 314.40, respectively.
Although his teams looked dominant against UMass, Smyth said he hopes ‘each athlete saw some things in [his or her] own racing that they can work on in practice and in subsequent meets.’