Scots at OAC Power Ohio Northern For a Dual Saturday

Molly Bittner

The College of Wooster swimming and diving teams will be in the water this Saturday, Nov. 3, for a dual at Ohio Athletic Conference power Ohio Northern University (2-0 men, 2-0 women). Ohio Northern’s men’s squad has won each of the last three OAC championships, while its women’s team also are the defending OAC champs. Last season, the Fighting Scots exhibited the North Coast Athletic Conference’s superiority when it comes to swimming, as they easily swept the Polar Bears 143-98 (men) and 141-99 (women). This Saturday’s meet starts at 1 p.m.

Last Week: On Oct. 26-27, the Wooster men swept their first two duals of the season, easily taking care of visiting Mt. Union College 132-75 on Friday night and then traveling to rival Wittenberg University Saturday afternoon where the Scots prevailed by a 139-100 count, while Wooster’s women split the two meets, coasting past the Purple Raiders 152-80 and suffering a 145-106 setback at the hands of the Tigers.

Scot individual winners against Mt. Union included Eric Babbitt (Rancho Santa Margarita, Calif. / Santa Margarita Catholic) in the 200 freestyle (1:51.32), Brendan Horgan (Hudson, Ohio / Western Reserve Academy) in the 200 butterfly (2:07.57), Michael Saltzman (Evansville, Ind. / Asheville School – N.C.) in the 100 free (50.07), Adel El-Adawy (Cairo, Egypt / German) in the 200 backstroke (2:05.53), and Logan LaBerge (Towson, Md. / Towson) in the 500 free (5:10.15). Also of note, Dustin Klein (Pittsburgh, Pa. / Fox Chapel Area) swept the one-meter (196.35) and three-meter (173.80) diving events.

At Wittenberg, a much more competitive meet, Wooster started out with a victory in the 200 medley relay, as LaBerge, Andrew Olsen (Evanston, Ill. / Evanston Twp.), Horgan, and Saltzman teamed for a first-place swim of 1:40.52. The Scots built on their lead via a win in the next event, as Babbitt took top honors in the 1000 free (10:46.89). Later, John Cushing (Pottstown, Pa. / Owen J. Roberts) came up with a key win in the 50 free (22.92), edging a pair of Tigers to the wall, followed up by Horgan taking first in the 200 individual medley (2:05.04). Babbitt was actually a double winner, also earning a victory in the 100 fly (53.99), while LaBerge and Jeremy Bervoets (Franklin, Tenn. / Franklin) added triumphs in the 100 back (56.22) and 100 breaststroke (1:04.45), respectively.

For the Wooster women, Tamari Farquharson (Kingston, Jamaica / Mercersburg Academy – Pa.) broke the 25-second arrier in the 50 free, recording a time of 24.84 during the first individual race of her collegiate career, which already stands as the eighth-fastest in school history. Also taking first-place against Mt. Union were Molly Bittner (Westfield Center, Ohio / Cloverleaf) in the 200 free (2:03.05), Amanda Bailey (Westlake, Ohio / Westlake) in the 200 IM (2:21.22), Kristine Mann (Warren, Ohio / Howland) in the 200 butterfly (2:25.47), Alice Case (Berkeley Hts., N.J. / Mount Saint Mary Acad.) in the 100 free (55.50), Meggie Edwards (Lynchburg, Va. / E.C. Glass) in the 200 back (2:19.18), Lindsey Dorko (Chardon, Ohio / Perry) in the 200 breast (2:43.77), and Caitlin McNulty (Sequim, Wash. / Sequim) in three-meter diving (186.15).