By DREW CASEY
STAFF WRITER
The Fordham swim team took to the pool in Piscataway, N.J. on Saturday, Jan. 25 and competed in four meets. The women’s team defeated Rider 214-82 and fell to Rutgers 169-28, while the men’s team was bested 160-135 by Rider and 205-93 by Yale.
“Although we were not victorious over Rutgers, we still had some great swims,” said senior co-captain Shannon Jones.
Of the 32 events at the Rutgers Aquatic Center, Fordham swimmers were best in eight and placed in many others.
Everett, Wash. native Kalena Laurent and senior co-captain Shintaro Noguchi led the Rams with two victories and a second place finish each.
Laurent captured the 100-yard freestyle in 54.33 seconds and was fastest in the 500-yard freestyle at 5:05.88. The freshman was out-touched in the 200-yard freestyle and took second place.
Noguchi continued his season long tear, winning both the 100-yard freestyle and 100-yard butterfly in season best times. He took the 100-yard freestyle in 45.96 seconds and the 100-yard butterfly in 49.54 seconds. Noguchi also placed second in the 200-yard freestyle.
The senior remarked on the team’s busy schedule in 2014.
“The heavy schedule has our team spending hours upon hours with each other,” Noguchi said. “Our chemistry [is] put together so well that it has strengthened our bond with one another.”
The women’s squad took first in three other events in the Garden State. Megan Zarriello captured the 1000-yard freestyle in 10:30.08. Freshman Megan Polaha touched first in the 100-yard butterfly in 56.98 seconds. Polaha also took second place in both the 200-yard butterfly and the 400-yard individual medley. The 400-yard freestyle relay team was also quickest among the competition.
On the men’s side, Steve Sholdra was the only other event winner. The sophomore won the 500-yard freestyle in 4:36.96, and placed in two other events. He took second in the 1000-yard freestyle and third in the 200-yard butterfly.
The women’s team is currently 6-3 in scored meets, while the men’s squad is 3-5. Both teams are poised to make a splash at the Atlantic 10 Championship at the Spire Institute in Geneva, Ohio beginning on Feb. 19, but they must first to focus on their final two regular season meets.
The teams will travel to Amherst, Mass. on Saturday, Feb. 1 for an A-10 showdown with the University of Massachusetts before hosting St. Francis (N.Y.) on Wednesday, Feb. 5.
“UMass will prove to be tough competition since they took second place last year at A-10’s, while we took third,” Jones said. “Whatever the outcome of that dual meet, we will be 100 percent ready for them come A-10’s.”
Noguchi echoed Jones’ sentiments.
“I am very confident in our training, and although we are still pushing through hard training, it will pay off come championship time,” he said. “I know we will outperform these teams.”