SPRINGFIELD, Ohio – October 26, 2024 – The Hiram men's swimming team stayed perfect on Saturday afternoon, rolling to a 125-70 victory over Wittenberg to improve their record to 4-0 this season. It marks the team's best start to the season over the last decade, as well as its third straight victory over the Tigers dating back to the 2022-23 season.

The Terriers women's team fell short against Wittenberg, 175-36, to round out the day for both teams.

Hiram now has plenty of momentum riding into its next meet, which will be next Saturday and a celebration of the seniors.

Men's Recap

It was a strong day for the Hiram relay teams, with the Terriers starting strong in the 200-yard medley relay (1:47.72) and finishing even better in the 200-yard freestyle relay (1:37.01). Nathan Ratynski, Jon Hybil, Joe Krosky and David Slovenkay were part of the first event, while Dayne Sauter, Ethan O'Malley, Ratynski and Hybil won the second of the two relays by over two seconds.

Owen Pastorius got Hiram on the board in the individual events, winning the 1000-yard freestyle by over 15 seconds (11:15.21). Moments later, Sauter cruised to a first-place finish in the 50-yard freestyle (22.73) to give his team some separation from the NCAC opposition.

Pastorius also won the 200-yard IM (2:15.66) and 500-yard freestyle (5:27.93), giving him three individual victories in a single meet for the third time this season (also at Bluffton and at Allegheny). Krosky (100-yard butterfly, 1:00.40), Sauter (100-yard freestyle, 50.63), Slovenkay (100-yard backstroke, 1:02.25) and Hybil (100-yard breaststroke, 1:08.29) all picked up individual victories to end a dominant stretch to the meet.

Hybil's race was one of the most entertaining of the bunch, as he edged out Wittenberg's Ethan Towle by .09 seconds (1:08.29 to 1:08.38) to claim a tight victory.

Women's Recap

Haven Papineau was in great form in the 50-yard freestyle, beating the four other student-athletes in the race – all of whom were from Wittenberg – with a time of 27.72. The sophomore also placed second in the 100-yard backstroke (1:09.03) and was part of the 200-yard freestyle relay team that also included Madison Fleischer, Grace Basham and Becca Johnston (2:02.64).

Fleischer also had a dramatic finish to her race in the 200-yard IM, edging out Wittenberg's Jenna Hallett (2:40.66) with a time of 2:40.03 to place second. Fleischer also wasn't far off the winning mark in the 100-yard butterfly (1:14.21).

Johnston rounded out the team's notable results with a clip of 1:20.93 in the 100-yard freestyle.

What's Next

Both the men and women will return to Alumni Memorial Pool next Saturday, when they host Bethany for a dual meet starting at 1 p.m. All seniors from both teams will be recognized just before the start of the meet.