By Tiffany Williams –
ITHACA, N.Y. — The WPI women’s swimming and diving team opened its season with a split that showcased both grit and depth, overpowering William Smith 203-85 but falling to host Ithaca 211-83 in a demanding double-dual meet that tested every swimmer in the lineup.
The Engineers got a major boost from their underclassmen, who carried the day with a mix of endurance, precision, and composure that bodes well for the season ahead.
The meet’s most thrilling duel came in the grueling 1,000 free, where first-year standout Amber Jacobs of Cedar Falls, Iowa, and sophomore Allie Marvell of Nashua, New Hampshire, traded the lead over 40 punishing lengths. Jacobs ultimately surged ahead to grab her first collegiate win, touching in 11:08.04 — 2.19 seconds ahead of Marvell’s 11:20.23, a career-best time that already eclipses anything she posted last season.
Marvell got her revenge later in the 200 fly, clocking in at 2:25.12 for third place while Jacobs took sixth in 2:29.13. The two went head-to-head again in the 500 free, where Jacobs took silver with a time of 5:27.59, and Marvell finished fourth at 5:29.82, edging sophomore Kate Creusere of Las Cruces, New Mexico, by less than a second.
The pair linked up again for the meet’s final event — the 400 free relay — teaming with first-year Mallory LaPointe of Saint John’s, Florida, and junior Katrina Waite of Falmouth, Maine. The group clocked 3:51.57 to take third overall, capping a strong day for WPI’s relay units.
LaPointe wasted no time making her mark in individual events, winning the 200 free with the only sub-two-minute swim of the field, a 1:58.32 that left the competition in her wake. She followed with second-place finishes in both the 100 free (55.76) and 200 IM (2:15.24), the latter coming down to a razor-thin .14 margin at the wall.
Sophomore Sarah Kang of Richmond, Virginia, matched LaPointe’s podium dominance, winning the 100 back in 1:00.03 after a fierce sprint finish, edging her opponent by just .21. Kang was back at it in the 200 back, where she missed gold by a mere .30 with a 2:09.84, and again in the 100 fly, where her 59.21 fell just .07 short of the win. Three races, three nail-biters, and three major point hauls — Kang made sure the Engineers stayed in every event she entered.
Sophomore Milena Whitney of Bedford, New Hampshire, and first-year Audrey Cook of Wakefield, Massachusetts, delivered solid performances in the breaststroke events. Whitney took second in the 100 breast with a 1:11.24, followed closely by Cook at 1:11.55. Whitney added a third-place finish in the 200 breast (2:35.83), with first-year Jasmine Lam of Dracut, Massachusetts, close behind at 2:39.99.
The meet highlighted WPI’s versatility — from the endurance of Jacobs to the technical consistency of Kang and LaPointe — while also exposing the need for sharper turns and finishes against powerhouse programs like Ithaca. Head-to-head, WPI showed promise but will need more closing speed to convert narrow misses into wins.
The Engineers now turn their focus to a packed Halloween showdown on Friday, October 31, when they’ll host Babson, Coast Guard, Smith, and Brandeis in a “Trick-or-Treat” meet that promises both fast times and fierce competition.
For a young squad that just sent a message in its opener, the real test begins now.