SPORTS BRIEF: W. Swimming Earns Fourth Win of Season

SPORTS BRIEF

Women’s swimming earns its fourth win of the nascent Ivy League regular season

The Harvard women’s swimming team capped off a dominant week of intra-league performances on Friday, crushing Brown 208-92 at Smith Swim Center to up its Ivy record to 4-0.

The Crimson and Bears split the first four events before Harvard rattled off 10 straight event victories to close out the meet, solidifying its perfect start. Brown is now 0-1.

Sophomore Noelle Bassi, ineligible last season following her transfer from Tennessee, again proved she was more than worth the wait. She handily captured both the 200-yard butterfly and individual medley events.

Senior Molly Ward placed first in each of the short-distance freestyle events, the 50-yard and 100-yard, with times of 24.12 and 52.41 seconds, respectively.

Otherwise, the younger underclassmen took care of the rest.

Freshman and Harvard Olympian Jaclyn Pangilinan took first in the 100-yard breaststroke, and was edged in the 200-yard by sophomore LeeAnn Chang.

Sophomores Kelly Blondin and Laurin Weienthal took first in the 500-yard and 1,000-yard freestyle events, respectively, each time beating classmate Emily Wilson.

Freshmen Lindsay Hart and Bridget O’Connor took top honors in the 200-yard backstroke and 100-yard butterfly, respectively, as well.

The rookies were no less visible in the relays than the individual events.

Hart, Pangilinan and O’Connor kicked off the 200-yard medley relay, swimming the backstroke, breaststroke and butterfly legs, respectively, before Ward capped the unit’s comfortable victory.

Blondin and freshman Amanda Slaight swam the second and fourth legs of the 400-yard freestyle relay with Ward and junior Erin Mulkey, adding to the Crimson’s overwhelming margin of victory with a dominant performance in the final race.

—THE CRIMSON STAFF