Sparked by new talent and led by veteran skill, the men’s swimming and diving team has started its season strong, tallying two scored wins thus far. The Bison started against UMBC in an officially unscored meet on Oct. 5, while the two scored victories occurred on Oct. 18 against George Washington and Boston University. A major contributor to both victories was Chris Devlin ’18, who has garnered success in both performances to start off his first collegiate season.

Devlin started his career with a bang in the meet against UMBC. Racing in the 100 and 200 back, the 200 free, and a member of the 200 medley relay squad, Devlin represented the Bison well. He claimed first place for the Bison with record times in the 100 and 200 back. For the 100, Devlin swam a time of 50.96, earning himself a spot on the charts as the ninth fastest in program history. Similarly, in the 200, Devlin recorded a 1:49.08, placing himself fifth in school history.

“We started the season off with a strong showing at our meet against UMBC, where I think we built up a good amount of momentum and excitement for this season,” Devlin said.

Additionally, Devlin placed first in the 200 free, while the medley relay team placed second. The Bison completed the meet against UMBC with nine total victories, placing first or second in every event.

The Orange and Blue saw continued success in their second competition, facing George Washington and Boston University in a home tri-meet. Once again, Devlin displayed a strong performance, helping the Bison by earning four second-place finishes–one in the 100 backstroke, one in the 200 backstroke, one as a member of the 200 medley relay team, and one as a member of the 400 free relay team.

These victories, along with many others from the Bison, led the team to a sweep of both George Washington and Boston University, earning the first scored wins of the season. Looking ahead towards the rest of the season, Devlin and the rest of the Bison have set high goals for themselves.

“Our goal as a team is to finish as highly as possible at Patriot League Championships in February,” Devlin said. “On the men’s side, we have our eyes on Army and Boston, as they finished ahead of us last year at that meet. We believe that this year we have the potential to put together a really good showing at that meet and earn a second-place finish behind only Navy.”

Men’s swimming and diving will be back in action on Oct. 25 when they travel to compete in Pittsburgh for non-league competition.

“I’m looking forward to continued success and a strong showing at championships. All our work now is geared towards fast swimming and sharp diving in February, and I cannot wait to see how all of it pays off,” Devlin said.

• 200-yard medley relay: second place

• 400-yard freestyle relay: second place

• 100-yard backstroke: second place (51.08)

• 200-yard backstroke: second place (1:49.15)