Cole Breaks 200 IM Record on First Day of NC State Invite

Thursday, November 18

Greensboro, NC

All Day

Army West Point

NC State Invite Day 1

Cole Breaks 200 IM Record on First Day of NC State Invite

November 18, 2021 | Men's Swimming and Diving, Women's Swimming and Diving

Results (PDF)

GREENSBORO, N.C. – Freshman Meghan Cole highlighted the early action for Army West Point swimming & diving at the NC State Invite, as she broke the program's record in the 200 IM by almost a full second. Both the men's and women's teams finished the first day of competition slotted seventh in the overall standings.

Cole touched the wall with a time of 2:02.33, good for a 22nd-place finish overall while besting Army's previous mark of 2:03.49. The rookie's race was one of numerous highlights of the day, as the team competed alongside some of the top programs in the country.

The Men's Meet
Five cadet-athletes stood out on the opening day of competition for the Black Knights (3-2) by advancing to the evening's finals session.

One of Army's most successful races of the day was the 200 IM, which saw three swimmers qualify for the D Final, led by Evan Yoo. The freshman was joined by teammates Alex Edwards and Sam Wesley in achieving the feat and the trio went on to finish 25th, 30th and 32nd respectively.

Owen Harlow became the fourth Black Knight to secure a spot in the evening swims when he punched his ticket to the C Final of the 50 Free. He placed 20th overall with a mark of 20.16 en route to collecting five points. Additionally, he broke the program's freshman record with his 19.97 leg in the 200 Free Relay.

On the boards, Army was led by Daniel Alaimo's sixth-place effort in the 3m event. With a score of 336.40, he was just over 10 points from a podium finish. In additional to Alaimo, David Manelis also contributed to the team's score with his second-place performance in the consolation final after posting a score of 322.15.

The Women's Meet
While Cole had the only record-breaking swim of the day, multiple Black Knights (3-4) turned in personal bests in various events.

In the first race of prelims, the 500 Free, Margaret Kroening swam a personal-best of 5:05.63 while leading Army in the event. The freshman shaved over two seconds off her previous mark while placing 38th in the field.

Ella Gross also recorded a lifetime best in the prelim session, as she posted a time of 24.53 in the 50 Free. She took almost a full tenth of a second off her previous time.

Cadets' Corner
"I feel like my race yesterday went really well. It was great to see the whole team on deck cheering for me and they gave me that extra motivation to finish the race strong. It fired up the momentum and was a great start to the weekend. This is a really fast meet to race at, and it allows our team to learn and compete with the best of the best. It sets us up well for the future and gives us the opportunity to swim really fast. I cannot wait to see what the team has in store for the rest of the weekend." - Evan Yoo

Team Standings - Men
1. NC State - 654
2. Arizona State - 538
3. Stanford - 418.50
4. Penn State - 303.50
5. Duke - 296
6. UNC - 201
7. Army West Point - 156
8. UNC Wilmington - 25
9. George Washington - 16

Team Standings - Women
1. NC State - 631.50
2. Stanford - 515.50
3. Duke - 432
4. UNC - 311
5. Arizona State - 271
6. Penn State - 261
7. Army West Point - 122
8. UNC Wilmington - 42
9. George Washington - 38
10. JMU - 6

Up Next
Army will continue competition at the NC State Invite for the next two days, Nov. 19-20. Prelims are slated for a 9:30 start each morning with finals sessions set for 5:30 p.m.

Follow Along
For complete coverage of Army West Point swimming & diving, follow the Black Knights on Twitter and Instagram at @ArmyWP_SwimDive and online at www.goarmywestpoint.com.