DALLAS, PA - Susquehanna University's men's swimming team faced their final test of the fall season Saturday at Misericordia's Cougar Splash Invite. Originally meant to be a two-day meet, Friday's opening session was canceled due to inclement weather, leaving Saturday's sessions as the end-all, be-all. Susquehanna competed against host Misericordia, Widener, Arcadia, Ramapo, and Juniata, with the River Hawks placing fifth with 157 points.

Saturday's morning session opened with the 200 medley relay, where the team of Kaden TenEyck, Akira Black, Dan Venuti, and Eskander Bierman finished fifth with a time of 1:38.16, less than three seconds off of Widener's winning time of 1:35.72. SU's second team of Brandon Sutherland, Timothy Wetmore, Liam Halligan and David Gentile placed ninth at 1:43.71. Wetmore served as the team's top finisher in the 400 IM, placing fifth at 4:33.09, with Kenny Smith ranking 11th at 5:15.00. Venuti persevered through a stacked Widener squad during the 100 butterfly, where the eventual meet winners placed four in the top six, as Venuti came in seventh at 53.58 as the event's third-fastest non Widener finisher and fastest among swimmers not from Widener or second-place Misericordia. Venuti was less than two seconds off the top mark of 51.89 by Widener's Alex Chan. In the 200 freestyle Keegan Pence took eighth at 1:54.46, while in the 100 breaststroke Black took fifth at 1:01.65. In the 100 backstroke TenEyck took sixth with a time of 56.32, while Sutherland placed ninth at 57.91. The morning session ended with the 800 freestyle relay where the team of Pence, Venuti, Gentile and Joey Wayne collected a sixth-place finish with a time of 7:45.37. 

When the meet resumed later that evening Venuti took on the 200 backstroke, finishing seventh in a time of 2:03.40, while Sutherland took tenth at 2:09.62. Over in the 100 freestyle TenEyck raced to a fifth-place finish in 48.85 seconds, less than two seconds of Jacob Rose from Misericordia's time of 46.94. Bierman placed ninth at 50.54, while Pence took 12th at 51.42. In the 200 breaststroke Wetmore placed ninth at 2:19.45, while Gentile raced to a time of 2:25.44, good for 12th. In the 400 freestyle relay to wrap things up, the group of Gentile, Bierman, Venuti and TenEyck finished fourth with a time of 3:21.57, just over ten seconds of the top time set by the Widener team at 3:11.10. The group of Black, Pence, Kade Cimakasky and Wetmore placed eighth at 3:27.94. 

The River Hawks do not have another competition until January 11's Landmark tri-meet with Moravian and Goucher, though they will travel down south for a training trip Dec. 13-20.