Skip to navigation Skip to content Skip to footer

Ben Freeman, Swarthmore, Swimmer of the Year

Ben Freeman, Swarthmore, Swimmer of the Year

LANCASTER, Pa. -- Centennial Conference champion Swarthmore swept the major awards to lead the 2023 All-Centennial Men's Swimming Team. Junior Ben Freeman was named Swimmer of the Year, freshman Cami Wilson earned Rookie of the Year accolades, and the Garnet coaching staff collected Coaching Staff of the Year honors. 

Freeman was tabbed by CC head coaches as the top conference swimmer throughout the regular season and championship. The junior distance freestyler won individual titles at last weekend's championship in the 200 and 500 freestyles and placed second in the 1650, securing NCAA B Cut marks in each event. The 500 crown gave him back-to-back golds in that event. He also was part of the winning 800 freestyle relay for the Garnet. Freeman's times in the 500 (35th) and 200 (42nd) both rank among the top-50 on the national performance list for the 2022-23 season. His 500 time is third best in CC history, while his 1650 mark is the ninth-fastest all-time. Throughout the season, Freeman scored 103 individual points in dual meets with nine total event victories, helping the Garnet to a perfect 6-0 record vs. CC opponents. 

Wilson secured Rookie of the Year accolades following a stellar regular season and championship for the Garnet. At the CC championship, Wilson set new conference and championship meet records in the 100 butterfly, placed second in the 50 freestyle and was part of three gold medal relays - 400 medley, 200 freestsyle and 400 freestyle. His 50 free time is ninth all-time in Centennial history. The freshman scored 110 points in individual events at dual meets on the strength of 18 total event wins. Wilson's 100 fly time ranks 31st in the nation. 

The Swarthmore coaching staff was tabbed as Coaching Staff of the Year in the inaugural year of the award. Previously, the award was dubbed Coach of the Year, which Garnet boss Karin Colby won three times (2017-19-22). Colby and assistants Sam Davy, Mabel Fowler, Mike PaceLeisha Shaffer and Charlie Kennedy guided Swarthmore to the CC team title, a perfect CC dual record (6-0) and a ranking of 25th nationally from the College Swimming & Diving Coaches Association of America (CSCAA).  

Gold medalists at the CC championship earn first team All-Centennial honors and silver medalists earn second team All-Centennial honors in both individual events and relays. Individual bronze medalists are named All-Centennial honorable mention. Swarthmore led the All-Centennial team with 14 swimmers honored, including 10 on the first team. Gettysburg was next with eight All-CC honorees, followed by Franklin & Marshall (6), Ursinus (6) and Washington College (3). 


Swimmer of the Year – Ben Freeman, Swarthmore
Rookie of the Year – Cami Wilson, Swarthmore
Coaching Staff of the Year – Swarthmore


First Team

Name School Cl. Event(s) Hometown / High School
John Devaney Franklin & Marshall So. 100 Free  New Hope, Pa. / New Hope-Solebury
Nick Cox Gettysburg Sr. 200 MR | 100 Back | 200 Back Purcellville, Va. / Ponte Vedra
Declan Sheeran Gettysburg Jr. 200 MR McLean, Va. / McLean
Max McAlister Gettysburg Fr. 200 MR | 200 Fly Powell, Ohio / Olentangy
Cort Hobelmann Gettysburg So. 200 MR Nashville, Tenn. / Owensboro Catholic
Charlie Cross Gettysburg Jr. 400 IM Charlottesville, Va. / Albemarle
Ham Williams-Tracy Swarthmore So. 800 FR Charlotte, N.C. / Myers Park
Ethan Marotte Swarthmore Jr. 800 FR | 200 FR | 400 FR Conway, Ark. / Conway
Ben Freeman Swarthmore Jr. 800 FR | 500 Free | 200 Free  Lakewood, Colo. / Colorado Academy
AJ Das Swarthmore So.  800 FR | 400 FR Huntersville, N.C. / Pine Lake Prep. 
Andrew Karpenko Swarthmore Jr. 200 IM | 400 MR | 100 Breast | 200 Breast  Minneapolis, Minn. / Minnehaha Acad. 
Cami Wilson Swarthmore Fr. 400 MR | 200 FR | 100 Fly | 400 FR Birmingham, Mich. / International Acad. 
Joey Lukner Swarthmore So. 400 MR Houston, Texas / J Frank Dobie
Cole Griscavage Swarthmore So. 400 MR | 400 FR Lafayette Hill, Calif. / College Prep. School
Ben Wesley Swarthmore Jr. 200 FR Prospect Park, Pa. / Episcopal Academy
Vijay Chhabra Swarthmore Jr. 200 FR Charlottesville, Va. / Saint Annes-Belfield
Ryan Carkhuff Ursinus Sr. 50 Free  Chester, N.J. / West Morris Mendham
Jonah Kasznay Ursinus So. 1650 Free Pottstown, Pa. / Owen J. Roberts
Gage Mandrell Washington College Sr. 200 Back Lititz, Pa. / Manheim Township

 

Second Team

Name School Cl. Event(s) Hometown / High School
Matthew Hopkins Franklin & Marshall Sr. 200 MR | 200 FR | 100 Back  Wayne, Pa. / Malvern Preparatory
Ben Lockey Franklin & Marshall Fr. 200 MR | 200 FR Highland Park, N.J. / Saint Joseph
Evan Willertz Franklin & Marshall So. 200 MR West Bath, Maine / Morse
John Devaney Franklin & Marshall So. 200 MR | 200 FR New Hope-Solebury
Thomas Smolinski Franklin & Marshall Fr. 200 FR Dallastown, Pa. / Dalastown Area
Charlie Cross Gettysburg Jr. 800 FR Charlottesville, Va. / Albemarle
Conor Vienneau Gettysburg Jr. 800 FR Newburg, Md. / LaPlata
Max McAlister Gettysburg Fr. 800 FR | 400 MR | 100 Fly Powell, Ohio / Olentangy
John Verosko Gettysburg Fr. 800 FR | 500 Free  Gainesville, Va. / Patriot
Nick Cox Gettysburg Sr. 400 MR Purcellville, Va. / Ponte Vedra
Declan Sheeran Gettysburg Jr. 400 MR  McLean, Va. / McLean
Hunter Sundlun Gettysburg Jr. 400 MR Richmond, Va. / St. Christophers School
Cami Wison Swarthmore Fr. 50 Free Birmingham, Mich. / International Acad. 
Ben Wesley Swarthmore Jr. 200 IM | 100 Breast  Prospect Park, Pa. / Episcopal Academy
AJ Das Swarthmore So. 200 Free | 100 Free Huntersville, N.C. / Pine Lake Prep
Ben Freeman Swarthmore Jr. 1650 Free  Lakewood, Colo. / Colorado Academy
Sam Peterson Swarthmore Fr. 200 Fly  Leawood, Kan. / Blue Valley North
Jonah Kasznay Ursinus So. 400 IM Pottstown, Pa. / Owen J. Roberts
Dylan Schreffler Ursinus So. 400 FR  Pottsville, Pa. / Nativity BVM
Stephen Lyons Ursinus Jr. 400 FR Palmyra, Pa. / Palmyra
William Cano Ursinus Fr. 400 FR Spring City, Pa. / Owen J. Roberts
Ryan Carkhuff Ursinus Sr. 400 FR Chester, N.J. / West Morris Mendham
Zach Affeldt Washington College So. 200 Breast  Savage, Minn. / Burnsville
 

Honorable Mention

Name School Cl. Event(s) Hometown / High School
Sam Kamdin Franklin & Marshall Fr. 100 Back Towson, Md. / Towson
Declan Sheeran Gettysburg Jr. 200 Breast  McLean, Va. / McLean
Ethan Marotte Swarthmore Jr. 50 Free | 100 Fly Conway, Ark. / Conway
Ham Williams-Tracy Swarthmore So. 400 IM Charlotte, N.C. / Myers Park
Finn Conaway Swarthmore Jr. 1650 Free  Eugene, Ore. / Winston Churchill
Jacob Sherman Swarthmore So. 200 Back Stamford, Conn. / Westhill
Cole Griscavage Swarthmore So. 100 Free  Lafayette Hill, Calif. / College Prep. School
Dylan Ling Swarthmore Fr. 200 Fly Bellevue, Wash. / Newport
David McCauley Ursinus Fr. 500 Free Deerfield, Ill. / Deerfield
Gage Mandrell Washington College Sr. 200 IM | 200 Free  Lititz, Pa. / Manheim Township
Chase Hensen Washington College So. 100 Breast  Fredericksburg, Va. / Colonial Forge


Sportsmanship Team

  • James Wright, Dickinson, Fr., Richmond, Va.
  • Sean Conley, Franklin & Marshall, Jr., Arlington, Va.
  • Conor Vienneau, Gettysburg, Jr., Newburg, Md.
  • Matthew Lessler, McDaniel, So., Ellicott City, Md.
  • Omar Ebied, Swarthmore, So., Woodside, N.Y.
  • Danny Leach, Ursinus, Jr., Palmyra, Pa.
  • Liam Peregoy, Washington College, Fr., Worton, Md.