By Andrew Lichtenauer
Senior Writer
The men’s swimming and diving team earned runners-up honors to Navy last weekend at the Patriot League Championships in Annapolis, Md. With their second-place finish, the Bison have now finished in the top three at the Patriot League Championships seven straight years, falling a close second to Navy in four of the previous five years. The Mids have now won nine straight league championships.
Christian Treat ’12 led the Bison with a pair of silver medals in the 200 breast and 100 breast, posting the second-fastest time in program history in the 200. Ben Seketa ’15, Nate Frye ’12 and Matt Stevens ’13 joined Treat as the three other Orange and Blue swimmers to score in the event.
“Going into the meet, we had some high expectations as a team. Our goals, to beat Army and close the point gap on Navy, were not something that was going to come easy. But these goals were not decided the day of the meet,” Treat said. “At the conclusion of last year’s championship, the guys all had a desire to reclaim our spot in the conference. This is what carried us through the off-season, through summer training and right up to the last relay of the meet. We created a winning atmosphere right off the bat and this grew into something that we all wanted more than any individual accomplishment.”
Like Treat, Mike Nicholson ’14 collected a pair of silvers in the 200 and 400 IM events. After claiming the Patriot League title in the 400 IM last season, Nicholson fell four seconds short of Navy’s Justin Vagts to earn second.
Swimming in their final Patriot League Championship, Eric Sokolosky ’12 and Thomas Brown ’12 each earned top finishes for the Bison in the 100 free and 200 back, respectively. Both swimmers earned fourth-place finishes, with Sokolosky going 45.28 and Brown going 1:48.39 in their respective events.
“Our dedication to training both in and out of the water, as well as our intense mental focus, allowed us to achieve many of these goals at Patriots. Taking home the runner-up trophy was a very satisfying moment for us, and a product of our hard work,” Sokolosky said. “With perhaps the most dedicated and talented group of individuals in Bucknell’s history, the expectations of this particular men’s team were very high. We swam solidly all weekend, qualifying well in the preliminary sessions and scoring crucial points in the finals at night. Although there were several standout performers, I know a few of us would’ve liked to have been a bit faster.”
Despite falling to Navy, the Bison were able to climb past Army after losing to the Black Knights last season. A portion of the Bison squad will continue their season this weekend at the ECAC Championships in Annapolis, Md.
