Results
BUFFALO – Four program records were set on Thursday evening by the State University of New York at New Paltz men's swimming team as the Hawks completed the first day of the 2017 State University of New York Athletic Conference (SUNYAC) Championships at the Burt Flickinger Athletic Center on the campus of Erie Community College.
In total, New Paltz tallied 136.5 points and trail SUNY Geneseo (299 points) and SUNY Fredonia (156), but are just 19.5 points behind the Blue Devils entering Friday.
Tomorrow's events will be the 400 IM, 100 butterfly, 200 free, 100 breast and 100 back. The prelims are at 10 a.m. with the finals held at 5:30 p.m.
In the first event of the evening, the Hawks placed second in the 200 free relay in program-record breaking fashion with a time of 1:23.26, thanks to the combination of senior
Jeffrey Pietkiewicz (Fremont, Calif./Irvington), freshman
Cooper Knapp (Glens Falls, N.Y./Glens Falls), junior
Barrett Celecki (Barneveld, N.Y./Holland Patent) and junior
Caleb Treadwell (Cortland, N.Y./Cortland). This swim broke the previous program mark of 1:23.73, set in 2016 (Kowalsky/Treadwell/Cooke/Koenig).
In the prelims of the 50 free, Treadwell set a new program best with a swim of 21.06, breaking the previous mark of 21.12, set in 2016 (Koenig). In the finals of the event, Treadwell placed fifth (21.34) and Pietkiewicz placed sixth (21.37), earning 14 and 13 points, respectively.
In the last event of the evening, the Hawks set a program record in the 400 medley relay, clocking a 3:26.19 in the finals, thanks to performances by Knapp, senior
Vitaut Gurskiy (Lindenhurst, N.Y./Lindenhurst), Treadwell and Pietkiewicz. This shattered the previous standard of 3:30.03 set in 2012 (Sweeney/Nastasi/Amato/Borrelli).
Knapp set a program and SUNYAC record in the leadoff leg of the 400 medley relay, as he clocked a time of 49.85 in the 100 back. This broke his own previous school record of 51.12 set earlier this season and shattered the old conference mark of 50.90 held by Alex Miller of SUNY Oneonta in 2013.
Celecki enjoyed a second-place showing in the 500 free finals, putting together a time of 4:41.64, just .48 seconds off the winning time, to give the Hawks 17 points. Junior Matt Kessler (Highland Mills, N.Y./Cornwall Central) placed 11
th with a mark of 4:52.46 while senior
Rob Cahn (Bellmore, N.Y./John F. Kennedy) placed 16
th (4:57.17).
In the 200 individual medley, sophomore Joseph Galante (Newburgh, N.Y./Newburgh Free Academy) earned nine points with his ninth-place finish, clocking 1:57.89. Junior
Marc Piliero (Peekskill, N.Y./Peekskill) turned in a time of 1:59.82 for 11
th overall while senior
Nolan Graziano (Rhinebeck, N.Y./Rhinebeck) and junior
Kevin Sales (Holtsville, N.Y./Sachem East) both earned points with swims of 2:03.36 and 2:04.16, respectively.
Team Standings (Through Thursday)
1. Geneseo (299)
2. Fredonia (156)
3. New Paltz (136.5)
4. Cortland (122.5)
5. Oswego (108)
6. Buffalo State (97)
7. Brockport (94)
8. Oneonta (76)
9. Potsdam (39)
