CMS Men's Swim and Dive Wins Third Straight SCIAC Title

LOS ANGELES, Calif. - The Claremont-Mudd-Scripps men's swimming and diving team used big performances in the 1650, 200 back and 200 fly, led by champions Lucas Lang, Anderson Breazeale and Frank Applebaum, respectively, to hold off Pomona-Pitzer and win its third straight SCIAC title by 27 points on Saturday at East Los Angeles Swim Stadium.

The two teams were separated by just six points heading into the final individual event of the championship, the 200-yard butterfly. That was Stag territory, however, as Frank Applebaum set an NCAA Division III record in winning the national title last year, and he took first place in the SCIAC Championships for the second time with a 1:47.26 to win by 2.5 seconds over Pierre Zeineddin of Caltech. It was also the third title of the week for Applebaum, after also winning the 100 fly and the 200 IM. 

His title was worth 20 points towards the CMS team total, but the Stags also had Henrik Barck, Thayer Breazeale and Tyler Headley in the finals, who finished fifth, sixth, and seventh, respectively. The four swimmers combined for 59 points, led by the 20 Applebaum won for finishing first, and Pomona-Pitzer was only able to muster 16 points out of the final (28 including the consolation heat), which put the title out of reach even before the 400-yard freestyle relay took place to close out the championship. 

Lucas Lang started the day with 20 points towards the CMS total with a win in the 1650, repeating as champion with a 15:30.01. Drew Schmidt finished in sixth to add 13 more points and give the Stags some cushion.

That cushion got wider after the 200 back, when CMS placed five swimmers in the final, compared to just one for Pomona-Pitzer. Breazeale won for the second year in a row with a 1:48.46, which was five seconds faster than he swam in prelims, while Korin Aldam-Tajima, Dylan Krueger, Weston Crewe and Grant Stucky all reached the final as well and made it a 70-point haul for the Stags (compared to 21 for Pomona-Pitzer). 

The Sagehens closed the gap in the 100 free, with the 1, 3 and 4 finishers, but Nick Tekieli earned his way onto the podium with a second-place finish in 45.32, and Theo Johnson also reached the final, coming in eighth to score 11 points. The 200 breast saw Pomona-Pitzer have four of the top five finishers to just about pull even with the Stags, but Evan Deedy was able to make his way onto the podium with a third-place finish to go with his 100 breast title from the day before. The rally from the Sagehens wasn't enough, though, as the CMS advantage in the 200 fly was enough to carry them forward. 

Applebaum had a huge weekend for the Stags, winning three individual titles and also having the key swim in the 400-yard medley relay, when he took over in a virtual tie (CMS trailing by .01) and won his leg by two seconds to help the Stags to a key relay win (a 12-point swing). 

Deedy earned the SCIAC Newcomer of the Year Award for his role in the SCIAC title, including his 100 breast title and All-SCIAC effort in the 200 (as well as contributing to two medley relay wins). Charlie Griffiths, diving coach Ahmed Elsayed and assistant coaches Kaye Henderson Zoolakis and Mike Sutton earned the SCIAC Coaching Staff of the Year. 

CMS will await NCAA Qualifications, which will be held next month in Greensboro, North Carolina.