Roy Burch: Men's Swimming
Roy Burch has been chosen Springfield College's Male Maroon Club Athlete of the Week (Mar.3) after having a stellar performance at the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Men's Swimming and Diving Championships at MIT.Burch opened the weekend as he and teammates Matt Manoni, Andrew Blakesley, and Greg Pearsall set the pace for the evening session by opening the finals with a blistering NCAA “A” cut time of 1:22.63 in the 200-yard freestyle relay. The finish not only earned the quartet First Team All-Conference honors, but it also set NEWMAC Open, Championship and pool records.
In the 50-yard freestyle, Burch secured his second First Team All-Conference honor of the evening and weekend with a NEWMAC Championship record time of 20.71 which met the NCAA “B” cut.
To wrap up the opening day, Burch teamed with Ryan Mackstutis, Anthony Bruno, and Pearsall in the 400-yard medley relay to meet an NCAA “B” cut time as they finished second in the race in a time of 3:28.67.
On the second day, Burch, who entered the event as the fifth-seed, secured yet another First Team All-Conference honor of the weekend in the 100-yard backstroke. Burch touched the wall in 51.28, good enough for an NCAA “B” cut.
Also on Saturday evening, the 200-yard medley relay team of Burch, Mackstutis, Bruno, and Manoni, placed third with yet another NCAA "B" cut time of 1:34.41.
In the final day of competition, Burch continued to rack up the wins as he won in the 100-yard freestyle, clocking in at 45.59 to reach an NCAA “B” cut. In the final race of the competition, the 400-yard freestyle relay, the team of Manoni, Pearsall, Bruno, and Burch ended the Championships with a record-setting time of 3:04.62. The mark not only reached the NCAA “B” cut, but also established new Championship, Open and pool records, while at the same time earning the squad First Team All-Conference honors.