WATERVILLE, Maine -- The Bates swimming and diving teams combined to set nine meet records at the Maine Collegiate Invite, held Friday and Saturday at Colby College. The men placed second out of seven scoring teams with 787.5 points while the women took fourth out of eight scoring teams with 626.5 points.
"The depth and vibes were Bates at its best," head coach
Peter Casares said. "It was great to be around such happy and supportive kids."
Men's Highlights
- The men's 200-yard freestyle relay team of senior captain Max Cory (Dublin, Calif.), sophomore Nate Oppenheim (Easton, Conn.), junior John Weigel (Iowa City, Iowa), and senior captain Marrich Somridhivej (South Windsor, Conn.) broke their own school record and the meet record as well, grabbing first place in an NCAA 'B' Cut time of 1:20.07.
- Somridhivej led a 1-2-3 Bates finish in the 50-yard breaststroke, breaking his own meet record with a time of 25.02 seconds. Junior Noah Katz (Hallowell, Maine) took second in 25.42 seconds and senior Kailer Tom (Daly City, Calif.) placed third in 25.63 seconds in the field of 27 swimmers.
- Weigel broke the meet record in the 200-yard IM, taking first place in 1:52.52. Oppenheim was the runner-up in 1:52.58.
- Weigel, Tom, Oppenheim, and Cory teamed up to break the meet record in the 200-yard medley relay, taking first place in an NCAA 'B' Cut time of 1:28.50.
- Oppenheim won the 100-yard butterfly in 49.14 seconds and the 100-yard breaststroke in 55.31 seconds.
- Weigel broke his own meet record in the 200-yard freestyle, winning in 1:40.49.
- Cory broke his own meet record in the 100-yard freestyle, winning the race in an NCAA 'B' cut time of 44.03 seconds. Weigel was the runner-up in 44.99 seconds.
- Oppenheim led a 1-2 Bates finish in the 200-yard breaststroke with a time of 2:03.57. Tom grabbed second in 2:08.80.
- Oppenheim, Weigel, senior Nate Pierce (Fairfield, Maine), and Cory broke the meet record in the 400-yard freestyle relay with their winning time of 3:01.00.
Women's Highlights
- Junior Sarah Palmer (Brunswick, Maine) won the 100-yard breaststroke and broke her own meet record with an NCAA 'B' Cut time of 1:03.28.
- Palmer also broke her own meet record in the 200-yard breaststroke with her winning NCAA 'B' Cut time of 2:18.59.
- The 200-yard medley relay team of sophomore Erin Barisonek (New Vernon, N.J.), Palmer, senior McKayla Kendall (Bangor, Maine), and first-year Lily Dunn (New Canaan, Conn.) took second place in 1:45.68.
- Palmer was the runner-up in the 50-yard breaststroke in 28.99 seconds.
- Junior Cora Zuwallack (East Falmouth, Mass.) was second in the 1,650-yard freestyle in 17:42.54 and took fifth in both the 500-yard freestyle in 5:09.87 and the 400-yard IM in 4:42.05.
- Kendall placed second in the 50-yard butterfly in 26.01 seconds while Dunn tied for third in 26.23 seconds.
- Senior Emma Burke (New Hartford, N.Y.) placed fourth in both the 100-yard butterfly in 58.17 seconds and the 200-yard butterfly in 2:07.68.
- Junior Soph Clausman (Edina, Minn.) took fourth in the 200-yard backstroke in 2:09.02.
- Erin Barisonek placed fifth in the 50-yard backstroke in 27.25 seconds.
The meet also featured a mixed 400-yard medley relay. The Bates team of first-year
Caroline Tyrrell (Acton, Mass.), Somridhivej, Burke, and Pierce took second place in 3:39.35, trailing only a team from Division I University of Maine.
Bates is back in action on Friday, Jan. 9, 2026 when the Bobcats host Gettysburg for a dual meet at Tarbell Pool.
