SCRANTON, Pa. - The Manhattan men's and women's swimming and diving teams earned victories over Marywood University in their opening meets of the 2014 season. The men's squad won by a final score of 154-82. The women's side achieved an impressive 154-51 result.
The women's team earned first place in 10 of 12 races, while the men took top honors in 10 of 13 events.
The Manhattan coaching staff named freshmen Neil Perry and Dan Dixon Men's Performers of the Meet, while freshmen Alexandra Hutzler and Eileen Blood were named Women's Performers of the Meet.
Perry took first place in the 50 and 100 freestyle with times of 21.87 and 48.71.
Dixon opened his competitive collegiate career, posting scores of 202.05 and 177.60 in the 1- and 3-meter dives, respectively. He also won first place in both contests.
Hutzler won three individual events, including the 100 breaststroke, the 100 butterfly and the 200 individual medley. Hutzler's time of 1:11.31 in the 100 breast earned her first place by over four seconds. In the 100 fly, she clocked in at 1:01.63, winning the event by almost five seconds. She flew by the competition in the 200 individual medley, racing to a time of 2:17.27, en route to taking first place by 7.61 seconds.
Blood swam to first place times in two distance events, the 500 and 1000 freestyle. Her time of 5:32.73 was almost eight seconds better than the next best competitor. In the 1000, she clocked in at 11:24.88, almost 52 seconds better than the second place finisher.
Returning Jaspers, junior Lance Neuendorf and sophomore Patricia Colton picked up right where they left off a season ago.
Neuendorf took first place in the 100 backstroke and 200 individual medley. He also swam the first leg for the winning 200 medley relay team.
Colton placed first in the 50 and 100 freestyle events with times of 25.60 and 57.03, over one second better than the competition in each race.
The Jaspers will return to the pool on Saturday, Oct. 18, when they take on Fairfield in their first Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) meet of the fall. The event is set to start at 1 p.m.