Dupage Policy Journal

The men’s and women’s swimming teams at Wheaton College found success at the Wheaton Invitational. 

The men’s team took third place at the invitational and were led by a strong performance from Chris Szymczak, who recorded an NCAA Select time on his way to winning the 100-yard backstroke. The Thunder finished with a team total of 682 points, while the Washington University in St. Louis team took second place with 890 points. The University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point took first place with a total of 1,141.5 points.

Szymczak won the 100-yard backstroke with a time of 49.46 seconds. The time was good enough to break the meet record of 49.96 seconds, which was set in 1999. Despite his record-setting pace, Szymczak narrowly won the race, coming in 0.52 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher. He followed his performance in the 100-yard backstroke with a first-place finish in the 200-yard backstroke. He also recorded a personal best time of 51.41 seconds in the preliminaries of the 100-yard butterfly.

His performance at the meet earned him College Conference of Illinois and Wisconsin Swimmer of the Week honors. It was the first time he received such honors during his college career.

Jack O’Connor also turned in a solid performance for the Thunder and took home first place in the 200-yard freestyle. He finished with a time of 1:41.82, which is the seventh-fastest time in school history. He also took seventh place in the 50-yard freestyle.

On the women’s side, the Thunder finished in second place at the Wheaton Invitational, finishing with 839.5 points. The team was led by Michaela Sandeno, whose 2:25.55 finish was the eighth-fastest time in the 200-yard breaststroke in school history. The Washington University in St. Louis won the team competition with a total of 978 points, and Hope College rounded out the top three with 674.5.

Wheaton also claimed a win in the 400-yard freestyle relay with a time of 3:33.76. The team, which comprised Brooke Barnes, Ashley Bowen, Kristen Garner and Maggie Franke, finished 2 seconds ahead of second-place Washington University.

Barnes also claimed a victory in an individual event, winning the 50-yard freestyle with a time of 23.83 seconds.

Bowen also placed first in an individual event, winning the 1,650-yard freestyle in 18:00.94, she finished 7 seconds ahead of the second-place finisher. 

The Wheaton Invitational was the second invitational of the year for both the men’s and women’s teams. Next up for both teams is the Quad Meet, which will be hosted Jan. 13 by Hope College in Holland, Michigan. The swimming season will run until February, and the CCIW Swimming Championships will be held Feb. 18 in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin.