Samuel Hughes earned All-NESCAC honors for his performance in the 200-yard backstroke as the Middlebury men's swimming and diving team finished in seventh place with 835 points at the conference  Championships. Williams won its 20th NESCAC title with 1819.5 points, while Tufts finished as runner-up for the fourth-consecutive year (1656.5), and Amherst rounded out the top three (1133.5).
 
HIGHLIGHTS

• Hughes took home third place in the 200 backstroke finishing with a time of 1:48.32.
• Luke McNamara placed fourth in the 200 butterfly, touching the wall in 1:50.98. Jack Paul and Andrew Planting each placed 15th and 16th, respectively.
• In the 100 freestyle, Riley Griffis claimed third place in the consolation final and 11th overall for the Panthers, clocking in at 46.29. Aidan McKenrick touched the wall just .62 seconds later to earn seven points for Middlebury.
• Paul Shen earned seventh place in the 200 breaststroke, finishing with a time of 2:03.61.
• McNamara followed up his performance in the 200 fly with a 13th place in the 1,650 free, stopping the clock in 16:15.31, in a race that featured 34 swimmers. 
• In the 400 free relay, Griffis, McKenrick, Hughes and Matthew Hensel claimed the seventh spot, clocking in at 3:04.85. The quartet of Christopher Pedersen, Jack Undercofler, Ryan Mauney and Pierce Bigelow secured the 16th spot, touching the wall in 3:07.58.

NOTES

• Hughes' time in the 200 backstroke earned an NCAA "B" cut time.
• McNamara also secured a NCAA "B" cut effort during the 1,650 free.

The Panthers will wait to find out selections for the NCAA Championship when the field is announced on February 22nd.