John Mrakovich

Women's Swimming and Diving

Williams Rallies to Win Third Straight NESCAC Women's Swimming & Diving Title

MIDDLETOWN, Conn. – The Williams College Ephs overcame a 26-point deficit on the final night of competition at the Webster Family Natatorium on the campus of Wesleyan University to win their third straight NESCAC Women’s Swimming & Diving Championship by 85 points. It’s the Ephs’ 22nd conference title in team history.
 
Runner-up Tufts led the field through three days of competition, but Williams won three events and picked up points with six second or third-place finishes to power past the Jumbos on the final day. Williams finished the championship with 1725.5 points, while Tufts totaled 1640.5 points for second place. Colby posted its best finish at the conference championships in team history, third (1274 points), and was followed by Amherst in fourth (1130 points). Hamilton posted its best finish since 2004 with 854 points to round out the top five teams.
 
1650 Freestyle
Madeleine Dunn won the 1650 freestyle for the second time in her career (last: 2023) with a time of 16:47.11. Dunn is just the second Jumbo to win the event, joining Megan Kono in 2009. Lily Codd of Williams placed second (16:54.71) and Jumbo rookie Cloe Nader finished third (17:10.17).
 
200 Backstroke
Alden White paced the field in the 200 backstroke with a winning time of 2:00.38. White’s win extended the Ephs’ streak of winning the event to four straight championships, and it marked the 13th time overall a Williams swimmer has claimed first place. Colby’s Alexis Coates finished second (2:01.10) and fellow Eph Irene Yang was third (2:01.11).
 
100 Freestyle
Rookie Sophie Phelps (50.22) out-touched Amherst’s Sydney Thompson (50.92) to win the 100 freestyle. Phelps is the first Williams swimmer to win the conference title in the event since 2018. Middlebury’s Anna McGrew rounded out the All-NESCAC swimmers in the event with a third-place finish (51.08).
 
200 Breaststroke
Bates’ Sarah Palmer captured the conference title in the 200 breaststroke with a time of 2:15.96. Palmer is the first Bobcat since Kara Leasure (2012) to win the event at the championship and snaps the Ephs’ streak of eight straight wins. The Ephs’ Anna Doherty (2:16.84) and Carter Roebuck (2:17.73) finished second and third, respectively.
 
200 Butterfly
Lily Codd picked up a win in the 200 butterfly for Williams with a time of 2:01.10. Codd is the fourth consecutive Eph to win the event. Maeve Kelley of Amherst was second (2:01.55), and Maggie Farley of Williams placed third (2:01.56).
 
400 Freestyle Relay
In the final event of the championship, the Amherst relay of Sydney Thompson, Lucy Smith, Maeve Kelley, and Paige Arnold set a NESCAC Meet Record with a time of 3:22.11. The foursome is the first Amherst relay to win the event since 2008. Williams placed second (3:22.72) and Tufts finished third (3:24.63).
 
In a vote of the conference coaches, the following individual awards were handed out at the conclusion of the meet.
 
NESCAC Swimmer of the Year: Madeleine Dunn, Tufts
NESCAC Co-Diver of the Year: Donna Zhang, Amherst & Avery Rappaport, Colby 
NESCAC Rookie of the Year: Sophie Phelps, Williams
NESCAC Career High-Point Swimmer Awards:
  • 1st place: Madeleine Dunn, Tufts (355 pts)
  • 2nd place: Lily Codd, Williams (341 pts)
  • 3rd place: Quinci Wheeler, Tufts (320 pts)
  • 4th place: Irene Yang, Williams (300 pts)
  • 5th place: Elizabeth Walsh, Bowdoin (296 pts)
NESCAC Career High-Point Diver Award: Malia Leung, Tufts (193 pts)
NESCAC Swimming Co-Coaching Staffs of the Year: Wesleyan & Williams
NESCAC Diving Coach of the Year: Brad Snodgrass, Tufts