(RESULTS)
Ewing, NJ — The State University of New York at New Paltz swimming team finished its final session at The College of New Jersey Invitational with a third place finish by the women and a fifth place finish for the men.
 
"The team did a great job with making great racing choices and committing to winning close finishes," said Hawks coach Tom Eickelberg. "They were really mentally prepared for the challenges of a three day meet, and rose spectacularly to the level of competition at the meet."
 
TCNJ placed first on the women and men's sides with scores of 946 and 1123.5, respectively. The Hawks followed Swarthmore College 832.5-560.5, but were triumphant over Arcadia University,  East Stroudsburg University, The United States Merchant Marine Academy and West Chester University on the women's side. The men scored 323.5 finishing ahead of West Chester University.
 
"As a group, we as coaches need to emphasize details more. Our turns, long a hallmark of our team, were generally for, and fatigue clouded the perfection of our finishes and body positions. We also need to generate more power under fatigue, specifically with our men's sprint crew," said Eickelberg.
 
Finals started off with the 1,650-yard freestyle as a timed final. Senior Degen Mariniello finished 12th with a time of 19 minutes, 30.84 seconds, while freshman Ethan Bonney (17:09.44) and senior Barrett Celecki (17:12.81) finished nineth and 11th, respectively. 
 
Junior Chelsea Angulas won her second event of the meet, finishing the 200-yard backstroke with a time of 2:07.33. She was followed by senior Jaimie Kaefer in second (2:11.30), sophomore Tessa Griger in 9th (2:14.27) and freshman Victoria Bogdanski in 15th (2:22.11). The women packed the 100-yard freestyle; senior Katie Donlevy was third to the wall (53.99) and was immediately followed by senior Nicole Lee (54.59). Junior Sarah Crespo finished 6th with a time of 55.38, while senior Whitney Knowlton-Wardle placed 13th (56.95).
 
Sophomores Lindsay Kranitz and Natalia Guinta were the lone Hawks in their respective events. Kranitz finished 9th in the 200-yard breastroke (2:31.46) and Guinta placed 11th in the 200-yard butterfly (2:25.70).
 
Senior Matt Kessler was the only male Hawk to finish in the top eight. He touched the wall 7th in the 200-yard backstroke for a time of 2:04.16. Freshmen Jared Finn (49.25) and Mitchell Chappell (49.63) followed one another to the wall for 13th and 14th finishes in the 100-yard freestyle. Freshman Akiva Garfield scored 16th place with a time of 2:23.79 in the 200-yard breaststroke, while Luke Gamboli finished 11th for in the 200-yard butterfly (2:02.67).
 
The meet finished on a high note as both the women and men's sides scored successfully in the 4x100-yard freestyle relays. Donlevy, Kaefer, Lee and Angulas won for the women with a time of 3:36.95, followed by Crespo, Knowlton-Wardle, Griger and Kranitz in eighth (3:48.56). Kessler, sophomore Nolan West, senior Joe Galante and Finn placed 4th (3:14.49) and senior Time Stecher, Celecki, sophomore Tom Barnitkowski and junior Matthew Pero finished 11th (3:24.78).
 
"The team relies on the culture we have and the love we have for each other. Bryan Christiansen, our assistant from two years ago, once said something to the team that they bought into wholeheartedly — 'If we are more excited for the success of others than our own, we will truly be a team.' This team embraced that idea, and took it to a whole new level- they love to be the loudest, most excited tema on deck because they truly believe that racing is a special opportunity. With that mindset, staying strong through a three day meet is easy," said Eickelberg.
 
The Hawks will travel back to New Jersey Saturday to face off Ramapo College at 1 p.m.

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