HALIFAX -- Sophomore
Clement Secchi collected seven gold medals and freshman
Daphne Danyluk captured five more as the McGill University swimmers ruled at the Kemp-Fry Invitational, a three-day, six-team Maritime meet hosted by Dalhousie University at the Dalplex pool, Nov. 15-17.
The McGill men won 13 of 19 events, smashed six school records and two conference marks en route to finishing first with 877.5 points, well ahead of second-place Acadia (735). The team added four new qualifiers for Nationals, including
William Simpson of Kingston, Ont.,
Samuel Lasinski of Penticton, B.C.,
Eric Pelletier of Baie d'Urfe, Que., and
Alex Younes of Montreal.
One the women's side, McGill posted eight race victories and erased two school records.
Secchi, a 19-year-old management major from France, produced four individual gold-medal finishes and helped three relays finish atop the podium as well. He swept each butterfly event (50m, 100m, 200m), along with the 200 freestyle. The 5-foot-10, 140-pound sprinter guided the 4x100 and 4x200 freestyle quartets to victory, along with the 4x100 medley foursome. He established school and RSEQ records in both the 50 fly (23.72) and the 100 fly (52.44), as well as the best McGill result ever in the 4x200 free (7:24.06)
Secchi, who won the Forbes Trophy last spring as McGill's male athlete of the year, set a school record in the morning prelims of the 50 fly (23.72) and produced another team standard in the 4x200 free (7:24.06). That golden group included
Simpson in the leadoff spot, along with team captain
Kade Wist of Calgary in third and junior
David Brenken of Toronto in the anchor leg.
Simpson, a senior who won four events, established a McGill record in the 200 free (1:48.72), accomplishing the feat on the leadoff leg of the aforementioned 4x200 free. The 21-year-old psychology major also claimed the 100 free in 50.12 and swam leadoff on the winning 4x100 free.
The other team record that tumbled was set by
Brian Yu , who hails from Beijing. He set his mark in the 50 breaststroke (28.55), surpassing the 28.79 shared by
Michael Luck (2014) and
Kade Wist (2018).
Danyluk, a 21-year-old native of Rivière-des-Prairies, on the eastern tip of Montreal, collected four individual first-place finishes and added another gold as part of a relay. She also merited a pair of relay silvers. The 5-foot-7 anatomy & cellular biology major won the 200 fly and swept all three backstrokes (50, 100, 200), posting a record time in the 100 back -- on the opening leg of the 4x100 medley relay. Her mark of 1:00.16 erased the previous standard of 1:00.70 set by
Simone Cseplo in 2016.
She also led the Martlets to victory in a controversial 4x100 medley relay, which established a school record in 4:09.98, erasing the four-year-old mark of 4:12.54. Joining Danyluk on that record swim was
Kelsey Crocker of Calgary,
Grace Valihora of Toronto and
Nikki van Noord of Hudson, Que.
Originally disqualified for a false start, the ruling was appealed by McGill head coach
Peter Carpenter and subsequently overturned. The men's 4x100 MR also had a scare.
"The drama for the relays was insane," said Carpenter "Secchi's feet slipped off the backstroke start. He still ended up going 54.94 and passing everyone."
Another key performance for the Martlets over the weekend was produced
Gabriella Doueihy, a biology junior and member of the Lebanese national program, who struck gold three times, winning the 400 and 800 freestyles, in addition to the 400 IM.
"We came into the meet with an unspoken confidence," said junior
Isabella Pittinger, the Martlets captain from Eden Prairie, Minn. "Our team is in a fantastic spot for where we are in the season. We're only getting stronger."
Other Day 3 gold medalists on the men's side included,
William Simpson (100 free),
Eric Pelletier (200 breast) and
Johan Boscher (400 freestyle) from France.
"I can definitely say that this is the fittest team I have ever coached at McGill," noted Carpenter "All the credit goes to these athletes and attitude they have been bringing to the pool every day."
McGill's next competition will be the second Quebec Cup meet of the season, on Nov. 24, in Quebec City.
COMPLETE RESULTS
FINAL MEET STANDINGS:
MEN:
1. McGill 877.5 pts.
2. Acadia 735
3. Dalhousie 612.5
4. Memorial 322
5. UNB 214
5. Mt. Allison 130
WOMEN:
1. Dalhousie 883 pts.
2. McGill 795
3. Acadia 473
4. Memorial 354
5. UNB 316
6. Mt. Allison 160
McGILL's BEST PERFORMANCES AT DALHOUSIE'S 2019-20 KEMP-FRY MEET
(at Halifax, Nov. 15-17/19)
