BEARCAT SWIMMING WEEKLY RELEASE - November 26, 2007

Swimming and Diving heads to Cornell
The Binghamton swimming and diving teams return poolside in nearby Ithaca, N.Y. on Saturday, December 1, when they take on Cornell in a dual meet beginning at 11 a.m.

Varanda paces Binghamton's efforts at Bucknell Invitational
Junior Brenno Varanda (St. Petersburg, Fla.) was a perfect 4-for-4, recording four individual wins pacing the Bearcat men's third-place finish at the two-day Bucknell Trials/Finals Invitational on November 17-18.

On Sunday, Varanda captured both the 400-IM in 4:03.16 and the 200-Breast in 2:06.48. The day prior, he won the 100-Breast in 58.35 and 200-IM in 1:53.64. Varanda now leads the Bearcat men with 10 individual wins on the season. His times in the 400-IM and 200-breast are the fastest of all America East swimmers thus far this season.

"Brenno really showed some power at Bucknell," head coach Sean Clark said. "We asked a lot from him and he responded tremendously well."

"There wasn't much of a break between his events, and to make a clean sweep of all four was a boost for our team. He trains with ferocity and is ahead of where he was at this point last year. It's been fun to watch him swim this year."

Binghamton came in third out of four squads with 763 points, finished ahead of The College of New Jersey (289 points), and behind Towson (1062) and host Bucknell (857.5).

On the women's side, Binghamton totaled 289 points, finishing fourth of five teams. Divers Kristin Maney (New Paltz, N.Y.) and Mel Gelfand (Syosset, N.Y.) were the women's top finishers, taking fifth and sixth place in the tree-meter event with 204.85 and 189.10 points, respectively.

The Bearcat freshman trio of Lyndsi Worthington (Leawood, Kan.), Brittany Detlef (Rochester, N.Y.) and Danielle Gallo (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.) all were consolation finalists as well.

"The women swam with some intensity," said Clark. "Fourteen different swimmers combined to post a total of 31 lifetime best times, so we are feeling pretty confident moving forward."

For full meet recap and results click here...

Last Time versus Cornell
Cornell swimming and diving squads posted dual meet victories over the Binghamton men (175-122) and women (191-108) in last year's meeting on December 2 at the Patricia A. Saunders Aquatic Center. The Big Red are 8-0 all-time versus BU.

Pre-meet Notebook
Both the Binghamton men's and women's swimming team have been recognized among the nation's top mid-major programs this season according to ratings released by CollegeSwimming.com.

The Bearcat men are currently ranked 11th in the Division I Mid-Major Swimming and Diving Rankings with 163.90 points. The Binghamton women held the 25th spot following the first release of the rankings on November 15.

The dual meet rankings use an objective point system to compare teams’ relative strength in a traditional thirteen event dual meet lineup. Lineups are submitted by participating teams.

Institutions eligible for the Mid-Major designation do not come from one of the eight major NCAA Division I-A football conferences or award fewer than seven women’s or five men’s scholarships. Mid-Major teams are also eligible for the CSCAA Division I Coaches’ Poll.

CollegeSwimming.com Mid-Major Rankings

Bearcat Andrew Palumbo (Yorktown Heights, N.Y.) continues to have a strong junior campaign. Palumbo has four individual wins on the season. He currently owns the third fastest time in the America East in the 100-Breast (58.75) and the sixth fastest mark in the 200-Breast (2:12.20).

Senior diver Matt Russo (Manhattan, N.Y.) has excelled on the boards for the Bearcats this season. Russo won the three-meter diver at the Bucknell Invite with 252.50 points. Earlier this season, he was victorious in the three-meter event against conference foe UMBC. Both Russo and junior teammate Ryan Graham (Vestal, N.Y.) have recorded some of the top performances in the conference this season. Russo owns the fifth highest score in the both the 1- and 3-meter dives, while Graham holds the fourth spot in the 1-meter and the sixth spot in the 3-meter dive

America East Performance Lists 2007-2008

Bearcats in Action
Photos from UMass dual meet (November 11)

Reviewing 06-07/Previewing 07-08
With first-year head coach Sean Clark at the helm, the men's and swimming and diving team enjoyed a historic 2006-07 season. The men's team finished with 6-3 dual meet record, runner-up honors at the America East Championship and sent its first male swimmer in school and conference history to the NCAA Division I Championships. The men face the tall task of replacing its much-heralded 2007 senior class, but with a strong cast of returnees and a number of impact newcomers this year's squad is prepared to fill the void and eager to leave its own mark on the program. The Bearcat women earned a seventh-place finish at the America East Championships and posted a pair of dual meet victories, highlighted by a solid win over conference rival Stony Brook. Youth is the name of the game for this year's women's squad which features 19 underclassmen, including nine freshmen and 10 sophomores.

Preseason Polls Announced
The Binghamton men's and women's swimming and diving teams have been picked to finish second and sixth, respectively, at the 2008 America East Swimming and Diving Championships, according to a poll by the league's head coaches, the conference announced Tuesday. UMBC was chosen to repeat as conference champions on both the men's and women's sides.

Conference releases:
Women S & D
Men S & D