COMPLETE RESULTS

BLOOMSBURG, Pa. - For the first time since 1989, the Bloomsburg University men's swimming posted a victory over West Chester on Saturday afternoon. The Huskies, with a first- and third-place finish in the 400-yard freestyle relay, came-from-behind to knock off the Golden Rams, 133-129, at the Nelson Field House Pool to open the 2016-17 regular season in stunning fashion.

"The men have had some big wins in their history, but this has to rank as one of the best," said head coach Stu Marvin. "What was it - 27 years since a BU team beat West Chester in a dual meet? Incredible win by a tremendous group of young men."

All told, the Huskies had 37 PSAC qualifying times and had six times in the Huskies' all-time top-ten list. But, it was the 400-yard freestyle relay team that stole the show with the top time in the PSAC this season.

Senior Eric Usbeck (Lake Ariel, Pa./Wallenpaupack), junior Josh Grzech (Mountain Top, Pa./Crestwood), junior Sam Feiser (Pottstown, Pa./Owen J. Roberts), and sophomore Kyle Dix (Schwenksville, Pa./Perkiomen Valley) propelled the Huskies to a first-place finish in the event with a time of 3:10.67 - three seconds faster than West Chester's second-place finish. The "B" team was the key, however, as they held off West Chester for third place to give the Huskies enough points to win the meet. The team featured freshman Doug Boehme (Blue Bell, Pa./Buxmont Christian Academy), redshirt junior Michael Anderson (Coopersburg, Pa./Southern Lehigh), senior A.J. Brady (Wilmington, Del./Delaware Military Academy), and freshman Colin Bauer (Pottstown, Pa./Owen J. Roberts) as the anchor.

"This was one of the most exciting meets that I have ever been a part of," said head coach Stu Marvin. "I have never heard the noise level inside Nelson Pool any louder - and that is going back to my days in the 1970's."

Eric Usbeck (Lake Ariel, Pa./Wallenpaupack) won four events on Saturday, including the 400-yard freestyle relay. The senior also posted the fastest time in the PSAC, and third-fastest in all of Division II, in the 100-yard breaststroke with a time of 55.99. He also took claim to the fastest time in the PSAC this season in the 50-yard freestyle with a mark of 20.95.

Dix joined Usbeck as a four-time winner on Saturday. He posted the fastest time in the PSAC to-date in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 46.47 to win that event. He also won the 200-yard freestyle in a time of 1:42.99.

Feiser was a three-time winner, posting the fastest time in the PSAC this season, en route to a win in the 100-yard butterfly with a time of 51.61. In that race, he edged his freshman teammate, Bauer, who finished second with a time of 51.86 - the second-fastest time in the PSAC this year.

The Huskies also claimed a win in the 200-yard medley relay which featured Usbeck, Feiser, Dix, and redshirt junior Ryan Paisley (Hazleton, Pa./Hazleton Area).

Boehme had a tremendous swim in the 1000-yard freestyle as he kept pace with the reigning PSAC Men's Swimmer of the Year in West Chester's Victor Polyakov. Polyakov won the event in 9:49.76 - less than a second faster than Boehme.

"I hate to sound stereotypical, but this was a total team effort from top to bottom," added Marvin. "Our upperclassmen swam well and so did our freshman.  We posted some incredible times for just the first meet of the season."

The Huskies will look to build off this historic victory when it returns to the pool on Friday, November 4 when they travel to Gannon University. Start time is set for 6:00 p.m. from Erie, Pennsylvania.