WATERVILLE, Maine -- The Bates men's swimming and diving team got the NESCAC Championships off to a terrific start on Thursday when the 800-yard freestyle relay team smashed the school record on their way to a third-place All-NESCAC finish in the event. 

Senior captain Mark Gregory (Saratoga Springs, N.Y.), first-year John Weigel (Iowa City, Iowa), first-year Tim Johnson (Brewster, Mass.), and sophomore Max Cory (Dublin, Calif.) swam to the finish in an NCAA "B" Cut time of 6:37.17, which absolutely destroys the previous Bates record of 6:42.89, set in 2022. 

On top of that, Gregory broke his own Bates record in the 200-yard freestyle to lead off the relay, touching the wall in 1:40.13. 

The Bobcats placed third out of 22 teams in the race, and the Bates "B" relay came in 16th with a time of 6:50.57. Combined, the teams scored 70 points, good for a tie for third with Connecticut College and Amherst through one event of the four-day meet.

The Bates men's swimming and diving team is back in action Friday morning at 10am for prelims, and at 6pm for finals.