Along with the 11 returnees from last season, Coach Farley will welcome several new faces and a familiar one to improve upon last season's 2-9 year and fifth-place finish at the Metro Atlantic Athletic Conference (MAAC) Championships.
"We're expecting a better year than last year," Farley said. "We have some athletes that have come back out for swimming and have some sophomores that didn't swim last year come aboard that will help. In general we have a really good group of guys this year and it should be a fun season."
Freestyle: The Stags will be the strongest at the sprint and middle distance freestyle events with a large group returning and several key newcomers. Leading the way in the middle distance and distance events are sophomores Rob Devine and Sean McGonigle. At last year's MAAC Championships, Devine finished 10th in the 1650 free with a time of 17:25.39 and 14th in the 1000 free with a mark of 10:22.60, while McGonigle placed ninth in the 1650 free with a time of 17:18.80 and 11th in the 1000 free with an ECAC-qualifying time of 10:16.71.
Adding depth will be Tom Scappaticci, the most veteran of the group at middle distance. The senior placed 12th in the 1650 free and in the top 20 in the 100 free at MAACs last season. He also posted several top-three finishes throughout the dual meet season.
Farley will also look to sophomores Matt Rimmer and Colin Fernandez for contributions. Returning to the pool for his senior year is Tom Kozlowski. A sprint freestyler, Kozlowski brings depth and experience to the event.
Freshmen Boris Romanovsky and Alex Connaughton will also lend a hand in the freestyle events. A native of Russia, Romanovsky was a four-year letterwinner and three-time conference all-star at Marblehead High School in Massachusetts. Connaughton, a Massachusetts native, was a four-year letterwinner on a talented Wayland High School team that went a combined 51-5 during his career. Another freshman who will see some time in the freestyle is Tim McMullen, a three-time letterwinner at Naugatuck High School in Connecticut.
Butterfly: Sophomore Brendan Sinatro has traded his lacrosse stick for a Speedo has he joins the team this season. Sinatro, a three-sport standout at Wyoming Seminary Prep in Pennsylvania, earned all-state accolades twice before joining the Fairfield lacrosse team last season. He will also add depth to the freestyle.
Backstroke: Junior Brian Lloyd will see some time in the backstroke events along with Rimmer. The pair will also be a key factor in relays, as they were the lead and last legs of the 200 medley relay team that set a school record at MAACs last season. Classmate Rob Willhoit may also see time in the back. Willhoit had a breakout season with the Stags as a freshman, setting four school records, including two at the 2005 MAAC Championships.
IM/Breaststroke: The Stags will be slightly short on depth in the IM and breaststroke events after losing veteran MAAC scorers Raul Delgadillo and Sean Killelea to graduation. The Stags will look to sophomore Drew Kingman, a transfer from Denison University, to fill some of the void; however, they will have to wait until second semester for him to become eligible.
Divers: There will be a noticeable absence on the boards this season as the Stags lost Rob Penwell to graduation. However, Fairfield returns a pair of upperclassmen, in senior Diego Ibarra and senior Russ Laub, along with sophomore Cristian Lopez. Ibarra placed eighth in the 1-meter and seventh in the 3-meter at MAAC Championships, while Laub recorded 10th-place in the 1-meter and ninth in the 3-meter. Lopez also gained valuable MAAC Championship experience, placing 12th in the 1-meter and 11th in the 3-meter.To complement the group, Diving Coach Dan Vener has added Taylor Stecko, a talented freshman out of East Catholic High School in Manchester, Conn.
