The Wabash swimming team, ranked 10th in the latest CollegeSwimming.com poll, took second place over the weekend at the DePauw Swimming Invitational.
The Little Giants finished with 726 points, trailing only seventh-ranked DePauw in the final men’s standings. Wittenberg was third with 512 points, followed by Millikin (442), Rose-Hulman (239), Illinois Wesleyan (216), Monmouth (182), Alma (153), Rhodes (132), and Principia (76).
Freshman Michael Belanger (Crawfordsville, IN/Crawfordsville) continued his outstanding rookie season, tying for top honors in points scored for the meet with 60. Sophomore Michael Hewitt (Greenwood, IN/Center Grove) was third with 57 points. Wabash senior Colin Fahey (Indianapolis, IN/Bishop Chatard) was the third member of the team to crack the top-five in scoring, tallying 53 points in his two-day effort.
Belanger took first place finishes in the 500 freestyle (4:52.36), the 200 freestyle (1:47.64), and the 1650 freestyle (17:05.35). He was also a part of the Little Giants winning 800-yard freestyle relay team. Belanger joined Fahey, Hewitt, and Matt Perkins (JR/Indianapolis, IN/Brownsburg) to take the top spot with a time of 7:15.56, outdistancing the second-place team by almost six seconds. Belanger, Fahey, Hewitt, and freshman Chad Damitz (Kokomo, IN/Kokomo) also took first place in the 400 medley relay, touching first in 3:35.25. Belanger, Hewitt, Damitz, and Perkins also scored second place points for the team in the 400 freestyle relay, touching in 3:14.31.
Hewitt was first in the 200 butterfly, outdistancing the second place finisher by more than a second with a winning time of 1:55.79. Another first place finish came for the sophomore in the 100 butterfly (52.290). He added a second place finish in the 200-yard individual medley with a time of 1:58.69.
Fahey put the final first place finish in the team scoring for the Little Giants with a top placing in the 50-yard freestyle (22.01). He took second in the 100 breaststroke with a time of 59.49, and third in the 200 free (2:14.61) and 200 breaststroke (2:14.61).
The Little Giants had several other swimmers place in the top-eight in several races. Ben Hewitt (SR/Greenwood, IN/Center Grove) was third in the 400 IM (4:24.65), fourth in the 200 breaststroke (2:17.88), and sixth in the 200 IM (2:04.20). Tony Caldwell (SO/Washington, IA/Washington) finished second in the 200 backstroke with a time of 2:03.28, while teammate Brad Williams (SR/Columbus, IN/Columbus North) took fourth in the event (2:05.08). Caldwell also took second in the 100 backstroke (55.39).
Perkins was third in the 100 freestyle with a time of 48.60, while Damitz took seventh (50.27), and Kyle Weaver (SO/Portland, IN/Jay County) was eighth (50.99). The trio added top-eight finishes again in the 50 free. Weaver was fourth (22.11), with Perkins touching fifth in 22.35. Damitz took eighth place (23.03). Damitz added a fourth place finish in the 100 back (55.53).
Weaver’s final top placing came in the 100 fly, taking third place with a time of 53.05. Perkins was fourth in the event with a time of 53.21.
While the swimmers hit the water in Greencastle, the divers competed in the annual Wabash Diving Invitational in the Class of 1950 Natatorium. Senior Howard Bailey (Moss Point, MS/Moss Point) was the top finisher for the Little Giants, taking sixth place on the three-meter board with a score of 256.05.