College of Staten Island men’s swimming junior Tim Sweeney is representing the Dolphins this weekend at the U.S. Naval Academy, showcasing in three events as part of the ECAC Open Championships in Annapolis, MD. The ECAC Open is being attended by athletes spanning all NCAA Divisions and is considered a last chance meet for many athletes hoping to land times that would make them eligible for NCAA National Championship contention. Preliminary meets take place in the morning and the finals are held later in the evening. Sweeney is participating in three events in total, two of which occurred today.
First up was the 100-yard Butterfly, and Sweeney swam to a 22nd place finish among a total of 66 swimmers, landing a time of 50.53, which was less than half of a second off of his fastest time. Sweeney’s time was the fastest among all NCAA Division III swimmers. Maine University’s Nick Sunquist’s time of 48.60 took the top time.
A little later in the morning, Sweeney scored a 31st place finish in the 100-yard Backstroke, posting a 52.46 time in the event, again just over a second a second off of his seed time. The U.S. Navy’s Ethan king won the event at 48.67. Again, Sweeney’s time did not merit an entrance into the final heats this evening, but it was the fastest amongst the DIII competition.
Sweeney will be swimming in the 200-yard Butterfly tomorrow morning, his final event. For that race he is seeded 18th at 1:53.01. To make the final cut for the evening competition, Sweeney will need to fare in the Top 16.
