WINTHROP, Mass. - Ahead of this weekend's Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Championships, the Norwich University men's swimming & diving team corralled a collection of the final weekly recognitions of the regular season, with
Will Thompson (Downingtown, Pa),
Drew Bylow (Monroe, Mich.), and
Kristian Adlianitski (Cheshire, Conn.) all receiving honors, as announced by the league office this week.
Thompson, the GNAC Swimmer of the Week, impressed at the two-day Middlebury Invitational this past weekend, where the Cadets took on premier competition from around the region, including topping swimmers from nationally-ranked Williams College. The Downingtown native swam legs in three relays, aiding the 200-yard freestyle relay team to a fifth-place finish (1:27.92), the 400-yard medley relay to sixth (3:39.96), and the 200-yard medley relay to third (1:37.13).
Individually, he posted a third-place showing in the 50-yard backstroke with a 26.84 effort, while closing out Norwich's performances with a fourth-place finish in the 100-yard breaststroke on 59.74.
The GNAC Rookie of the Week, Bylow was fantastic at Middlebury's Natatorium, usurping top competition from four other regional institutions. He swam legs in two relays, including the 200-yard freestyle relay team that came in fifth (1:27.92) and the 200-yard medley relay that finished in third (1:37.13).
Outside of relays, Bylow posted Norwich's best individual showing of the day, coming in second in the 50-yard backstroke on a 24.98 effort. He also finished in fourth in the 200-yard freestyle on a 1:49.46 effort.
Adlianitski was tapped to the GNAC Honor Roll after also participating in three relays, including the 200-yard freestyle relay, 400-yard medley relay, and 200-yard medley relay. He touched the wall in 21.88 to finish fourth in the 50-yard freestyle, before coming in third in the 200-yard freestyle on a 1:47.88 time.
For Thompson, his Swimmer of the Week nod marks the second of the season and the eighth overall Swimmer of the Week accolade for the men's swimming & diving team. He joins Adlianitski in receiving the weekly honor multiple times this year. Bylow's honor continues his historic stretch of Rookie plaudits, marking the seventh for him in his young career.
Norwich, with hopes of defending back-to-back conference titles, will now turn its attention to the three-day Great Northeast Athletic Conference (GNAC) Championships, hosted by Worcester Polytechnic Institute (WPI) from Feb. 7 through Feb. 9. The Cadets, alongside the women's swimming & diving teams, were voted to claim their third-straight conference championships, as recently announced in the GNAC's Pre-Championship Poll.
