The Rowan men’s swimming team participated in their final meet of the season from Feb. 16 to Feb. 19 in the Metropolitan Conference Championships (METs) at Rutgers University in Piscataway, New Jersey. The Profs placed third out of 13 teams.

Even though the Profs did not come out on top in the METs, junior Jack Watson was impressed with the team’s performance.

“I am very impressed by what the team did,” Watson said. “I think a lot of younger classmen stood out and had some breakout swims. It gets me excited for next year to see what we can do.” 

On the first day of the METs, the 800 free relay team of Watson, junior Alex Volin, sophomore Tobias Cahnbley, and sophomore Justin Goglia broke the school record with a time of 6:39.97, which qualified as an NCAA B cut result. The previous record was set at the METs back in 2020 (6:43.77).

On day two, Cahnbely won the 500 free with a time of 4:29.00, resulting in another NCAA B Cut time. In the process, the sophomore from West Windsor, New Jersey broke his own school record.

The third day was another quality one for the Profs. Junior Michael Fracchiolla recorded a personal record in the 100 breast (55.46), which was also an NCAA B Cut time. Jack Watson had another spectacular day, as well, breaking the school record in the 100 backstroke with an NCAA B cut time of 47.54. The standout from Cherry Hill, New Jersey made it the third consecutive day of the weekend that the Profs had a school record shattered.

On the fourth and final day of the METs, Cahnbley tallied a personal record in the 200 backstroke (1:49:56), as well as another NCAA B Cut time. Senior Joe Rucci also saw success, logging a personal record in the 200 fly with a time of 1:49.56. 

Cahnbley had a phenomenal weekend, one which saw him break two school records. The sophomore is thrilled with his performance, but still believes he may have left some meat on the bone.

“I think my performance was solid, I was pretty happy with my races,” Cahnbley said. “I was expecting to do better, but I can’t say I was disappointed. It was really nice hitting my PR. I was hoping to qualify for that NCAA B Cut, which I did. I’m happy about that.” 

The Profs finished the season with an overall record of 4-3 and a 3-1 record in New Jersey Athletic Conference (NJAC) play. So far, the only Prof to qualify for the NCAA Division III Championship Tournament in March is Jack Watson, however, multiple swimmers stated their case during the METs to participate in the competition. We’ll see if any more Profs’ get a bid to the tournament that begins on March 15.

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