KEENE, N.H. – Friday afternoon at Keene State College's Spaulding Pool, the Eastern Connecticut State University women's and men's swim teams  returned to the pool for their sixth competition of the season following a month-long break for exams and the holiday, battling their Little East Conference rival.

In only the second dual meet of the year for both Eastern teams, the men (2-0) crushed Keene (1-5), 180-87, claiming ten of a possible 13 firsts in individual races and both relays. The Warriors were led by first-year swimmer Spencer Bagtaz (Wilmington, MA) and juniors Boden Tito (Southington) and Ryan Jezek (Avon), who shared the lead among swimmers on both teams with 18 points apiece.

The men defeated Keene for the third time in dual competition in the last four years.

The Eastern women (1-1) won the swimming competition but were edged overall by Keene (4-2), 139-132, which collected nine points in diving  (Eastern does not sponsor diving).

The women were led by three first-year swimmers in Ashley Carvente (Norwalk), Julia Ames (Pawtucket, RI) and Jai-Lynn Wheeler (Stonington). Carvente and Ames shared second place overall in points, with 18 each, with Wheeler collecting 13, as did junior Cassandra Wentzell (Wallingford).

As a team, the Eastern women won six of 13 individual events and one of two relays.

A 20-time LEC Championship winner, the Keene women remained unbeaten (23-0) against Eastern in dual-meet competition, although the Warriors ended the Owls' 16-year stranglehold on the LEC title by winning their first championship in 2024.

Six Collect Double-Figure Points for Men

Behind Bagtaz, Tito and Jezek, three additional individual totalled double-figures in points: Junior Eric Quiterio (Windsor), senior Sam Hurlburt (Meriden) and sophomore Ethan Rychling (Storrs), with 13, 12 and 11, respectively.

Bagtaz won two individual events – the 100 (59.24) and 200 (2:12.02) backstroke and contributed two both winning relays. He swam anchor on the 200 freestyle relay (1:33.91) and the backstroke (leadoff) on the 200 medley relay (1:44.21).

Tito won the 500 freestyle (5:07.16) and 200 butterfly (1:59.64) and swam the breaststroke on the winning 200 medley relay (1:44.21).

Like Tito, Jezek won two individual events – the 100 (49.63) and 200 (1:53.57) freestyle -- and swam leadoff on the winning 200 freestyle relay (1:33.91).

Additional individual winners were Quiterio, sophomore Tate Peterson (Wareham, MA), Hurlburt and Rychling. Quiterio won the 100 butterfly (55.51), Peterson the 50 freestyle (23.58), Hurlburt the 100 breaststroke (1:03.96) and Rychling the 200 individual medley.
 
Carvente and Ames are Double Winners for Women

Carvente won the 100 (1:03.79) and 200 (2:20.45) butterfly, with Ames touching first in the 100 backstroke (1:05.55) and 200 IM (2:29.00). Wheeler claimed the 100 freestyle (56.85) and swam the second (breaststroke) leg of the winning 200 medley relay (2:01.62). Wentzell's victory in the 200 backstroke (2:26.55) gave the Warriors six individual firsts. Joining Wheeler on the winning 200 medley relay were seniors Camille Attle (Bristol) and Natasha Frisch (Mendota Heights, MN), and first-year swimmer Lauren Waitkus (Cheshire). Waitkus swam the opening leg (backstroke), Attle the third (butterfly) and Frisch (freestyle) the anchor.

Last Time Out
Prior to Keene, the Warriors last competed Dec. 5-6 at the Connecticut Cup at the Webster Family Natatorium on the campus of Wesleyan University. The Eastern women and men both placed fourth in a strong seven-team field at Wesleyan.

The Rest of the Way…
The Warriors close out the regular season two remaining meets: a week from Saturday, January 17 at the University of Saint Joseph at 1 p.m. and at home on Saturday, January 24 with a dual meet against Norwich University on Senior Day.

Among the women expected to be recognized on Senior Day are Camille Attle, Natasha Frisch, Olivia Grimm, Emily Madden, Kaitlyn Nielsen, and Emma Wheeler. Among the men to be recognized are Uzi Bhura, James Bragg-Phillips, Deagan Granville, and Sam Hurlburt.

The Warriors close out the season at the Little East Conference Championships Feb. 12-15 at the Boston Sports Institute. Diving competition will be held on Feb. 12 at Babson College before the three-day swimming competition. The trials each day get underway at 10 a.m. and the finals at 6:30 p.m.

A sixth-year program, the Eastern men won their first LEC title a year ago with an 80-point win over runner-up Maine Maritime Academy, with the Warriors amassing 20 first and second-place finishes in a field of seven teams. Coming off their first LEC title in 2023/24, the women finished a solid third among 11 competing schools, totalling 685 points.