KINGS POINT, N.Y. (Jan. 13, 2024) – The U.S. Merchant Marine Academy men's swimming & diving team triumphed over arch-rival Coast Guard by a 161-139 score on Saturday at the Sue Petersen Lubow Pool. The victory was the Mariners' third in as many years against the Bears and improved their dual-meet record to 4-0, while Coast Guard fell to 4-2.
 
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USMMA took the top-three spots in both the diving competitions, as sophomore diver Thomas Cable (Litchfield Park, Ariz.) earned NCAA qualifying marks on both diving disciplines, posting a 318.60 score on the one-meter board and a 300.23 on the three-meter. Junior Brendan Griffiths (Easton, Pa.) took second place on both boards, scoring 271.45 points in the one-meter competition and 277.80 points in the three-meter event, and senior Devin Dyer (Brandon, Fla.), finished third with scores of 263.70 in the one-meter event and 276.70 in the three-meter apparatus.
 
In the pool, the Mariners bested the Bears by outright winning five events beginning with the 200-yard medley relay. The USMMA 'A' team of sophomore Teague Mayer (Boulder, Colo.), juniors Dylan White (Burke, Va.) and Joseph DeCarlo (Powder Springs, Ga.), and freshman Barrie Snyder (Jacksonville, Fla.) outpaced the Coast Guard 'A' unit by a full three seconds to win the race in a time of 1:32.87. The Mariners also earned two points in the relay thanks to the third-place finish from the 'B' team (1:36.06) of seniors Heath Lewis (Chesapeake, Va.) and James Todd (Columbia, S.C.) along with freshmen Luke Dankert (Grand Island, Neb.) and Daniel Gibbs (Stafford, Va.).
 
Mayer was victorious in the 100-yard backstroke in a time of 51.29 seconds as the Mariners swept the podium in the event with Lewis clocking a second-place mark of 53.30 seconds and freshman Abraham Shim (Rockwall, Texas) improving on his season-best time with a third place showing (53.59s) that was nearly a full two seconds faster than his prior best effort. Mayer also was the victor in the 200-back (1:53.70) with Shim claiming third place in a time of 1:56.72. DeCarlo claimed the crown in the 200-yard butterfly (1:56.99) with Gibbs placing third (1:59.56) and senior Daniel Scherrer (Wellesley, Mass.) took first place in the 50-free by touching the wall in a time of 21.11 seconds with Snyder (21.67s) and Todd (21.76s) placing third and fourth to earn an additional five points towards the team total.
 
In other events, sophomore Matthew Wachendorfer (Greensboro, N.C.) took second place in the 200-yard freestyle in a time of 1:46.06. Meanwhile, White, Dankert, and freshman Caden Latchaw (Queenstown, Md.) posted times of under one minute in the 100-yard breaststroke to earn second, third, and fourth place, respectively. The Mariners took second through fourth place as well in the 100-free with Scherrer (47.05s) besting teammates Todd (48.27s) and Snyder (48.36s). First-year long-distance swimmer Ryan Lester (Heath, Texas) placed second in the 500-yard freestyle (4:51.12) and third in the 1000-yard free (10:04.22).
 
Prior to the meet, the Mariners honored the nine members of their senior graduating class including Dyer, Lewis, Scherrer, Todd, Oliver Austin (Essex, Vt.), Matthew DunLany (Boardman, Ohio), Jonathan Wargo (West Branch, Iowa), and Ethan Williams (Huntingtown, Md.).
 
The "Mariner of the Meet" awards were bestowed upon Cable and Shim, based on a team vote to an individual for their performance and contribution to the team.
 
The USMMA men's swimming and diving team is next in action on Sunday (Jan. 14) in a head-to-head meet with the University of Scranton. The divers will compete at Marywood University at 11 a.m. with the swimmers hitting the pool at 1 p.m. A live link to watch the swimming portion of the meet is available on the USMMA Men's Swimming & Diving Schedule Page.
 
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