POTSDAM, NY – A pair of relays set school records and freshman Raphael Weber added record-breaking performances in the 500-yard freestyle and 200 backstroke races to go along with another school record for sophomore Antonie Pieterse in the 50 fresstyle as the Roberts Wesleyan University Men's Swimming and Diving team placed third overall at the North Country Invitational Friday and Saturday at SUNY Potsdam.
Roberts placed third in the team standings with a score of 413 points, Saint Michael's College (614 points) was first and Clarkson University (559) was second. Norwich University (310) was fourth and SUNY Potsdam (24) was fifth.
Weber and Pieterse were each part of the records for the relays as Roberts set school records in the 400 medley relay and the 400 free relay. Weber, freshman Leu Cabanayan, Pieterse and freshman Hayden Smith raced to a school-record time of 3:30.97 in the medley relay while Pieterse, sophomore Ethan Springle, Weber and Smith took first place in the freestyle relay with a new school-record time of 3:15.09.
Webber was third overall with a school-record time of 4:51.34 in the 500 freestyle after sophomore Tanner Pinto-Cohn has set the record in the previous heat with his time of 4:55.40. Webber raced to a new record in the 200 back with a time of 1:55.10.
Pieterse had another great weekend as he set the school record in the 50 free with his lead leg time of 20.28 in the 200 free relay. The time was also an NCAA B-cut for the event.
The sophomore All-American moved to third place in the national rankings in the 100 butterfly as he won the race with a time of 46.98. He also won the 200 fly in 1:51.19 and the 200 free with a time of 1:40.48.
Cabanayan took second place in the 100 breast with a time of 1:01.84 and was edged at the wall by less than half a second.
The Roberts swimmers completed the first semester and will swim next in January at Pitt-Bradford. The divers will compete next weekend at the Don Richards Invitational at RIT and Pieterse will compete at the USA Swimming US Open events in Austin, Texas next weekend.
