Yale Athletics

The men’s swimming and diving team (2–0, 2–0 Ivy) defeated Columbia (0–2, 0–2 Ivy) in New Haven on Saturday, ending the meet with a final score of 209–91. 

As the second meet of the season, the Bulldogs came in having crushed Brown the week before, while the Lions had fallen to Princeton. The Elis continued to dominate, triumphing over the Lions and keeping the winning streak alive.

“These wins are exciting milestones on our journey toward our ultimate goal — an Ivy Championship later in the year,” Noah Millard ’26 wrote to the News. “Beating Columbia for the first time in six years, especially in front of such a large group of alumni, made it all the more special. It’s an incredible start to what we know will be an unforgettable season.” 

The Bulldogs performed well overall, with standout showings from Charlie Egeland ’27 and Millard, who each claimed first in three events. Egeland placed first in the 100 breaststroke clocking in at 53.89, the 200 breaststroke in 1:58.29 and the 200 individual medley in 1:49.55. Millard won the 1000 freestyle with a time of 9:11.50, the 500 freestyle in 4:20.74 and the 100 backstroke in 48.26. 

First-years Nick Finch ’28, Jake Wang ’28, Manoli Mountantonakis ’28 and Arshak Hambardzumyan ’28 also excelled in their respective events. Sprinter Finch secured first place victories in the 50 freestyle and 100 butterfly in 19.84 and 47.44, respectively. Wang took first place in the 100 freestyle, clocking in at 44.72. Mountantonakis finished first in the 200 backstroke in 1:48.15 and second in the 100 backstroke, touching the wall in 49.82. Hambardzumyan finished second in the 1000 freestyle with a time of 9:15.49. 

The Elis triumphed in the 200 medley relay and the 400 freestyle relay. The team of Wang, Egeland, Finch and Deniel Nankov ’27 secured first place in the 200 medley relay, finishing in 1:27.33.

The team of Lucius Brown ’26, Alex Deng ’25, Alexander Hazlett ’26 and Nareg Minassian ’26 followed closely with a time of 1:28.74. Finch, Nankov, Hazlett and Millard took first in the 400 freestyle relay, touching the wall in 2:57.60. 

The 200 backstroke proved to be the best individual event for the Bulldogs, with Mountantonakis, Mak Nurkic Kacapor ’27 and Elliot Lee ’28 claiming first, second and third. Mountantonakis finished first in 1:48.15, followed by Kacapor in 1:50.10 and Lee in 1:50.33. 

The Bulldogs also dominated the 500 freestyle and 100 butterfly. Millard and Hambardzumyan took first and second in the 500 freestyle in 4:20.74 and 4:31.38, respectively, while Finch and Hazlett claimed the top two spots with their times of 47.44 and 49.38 in the 100 butterfly. 

On the diving side, Nicholas Chau ’26 once again secured a first place finish for the Elis, winning the one-meter board with a score of 340.58. Brady Stanton ’28 trailed Columbia’s Joseph Nicol, who finished second with 322.35, with a score of 318.08. Chau narrowly fell to Nicol in the three-meter board, 362.03 to 367.05. Ray Wipfli ’25 placed third with 333.00, and Stanton finished fourth with a score of 329.18. First-year Jackson Lipscomb ’28 rounded out the meet by setting a new team record with his score of 396.08. 

Reflecting on the team’s major win over Columbia, Millard is excited to keep up the momentum in his final season with the Bulldogs.  

“I’d say that our team this year shares a really special sense of camaraderie and collective vision that drives us every day,” Millard wrote.

The Bulldogs will travel to Columbus, OH to swim in the Ohio State Invitational from Thursday, Nov. 21 to Saturday, Nov. 23.