Varsity Match Report 2023
On Saturday the 25th of February, the Oxford University Swimming Club travelled to Parkside Pools, Cambridge, for the annual Varsity match. The Blues Team painted the pool thoroughly dark blue as they took a 99 – 81 point victory over Cambridge. The atmosphere was electric, and all swimmers should be extremely proud of their terrific racing.
The day began with the 200m Women’s Individual Medley, in which Oxford fielded freshers Cayen Wang and Freya McCauley-Wright. While Cambridge took first and second, payback was delivered quickly in the Open category, with the trusty combination of Jonathan Rutter and Max Underwood demonstrating some truly spectacular racing to take first and second respectively.
Next up was the Women’s 100m Backstroke, in which we were represented by Charlotte O’Leary and Aggie Burns. While Cambridge Captain Sophie O’Keefe took first place, Charlotte delivered a powerhouse swim of 1.03.23 to break the Oxford record and finish in a very close second place. In the Open backstroke, Vice-Captain Jackson Spry and fellow backstroker David Pugh swam their socks off to finish in first and fourth place respectively.
Next came the Women’s 200m Freestyle, with President Sophie Lawrence and Captain Ellie Browne easily cruising to an Oxford victory. They were followed by the men, with Max Anderson Loake and Team Junior Samual Nicholls finishing in a very respectable second and third. Nina Holguin and Vice-Captain Eva Ponting did the same in their magnificent 100m Butterfly. Captain Andrew Hong put in a dominant performance to take victory in the Open Butterfly, with Nicholas Jones also picking up some points in 3rd place. Emily Manock then smashed out a personal best in the Women’s Mixed Category 50m Freestyle.
Things were looking good for OUSC at the first break, but there were still many races to come. President Lawrence kicked off the next set of races with another commanding victory in the 400m Freestyle, and Deryn Cressey-Rodgers finished in third place after a nail-biting fight for second. The Men’s team picked up a very nice one-two from powerhouses Anderson Loake and Pugh.
In the Women’s 100m Breaststroke, Ellie Browne and Zoé Faure Beaulieu finished in second and third against tough competition. In the Men’s race, a freshly-out-of-retirement Tobermory Mackay-Champion was joined by Max Underwood, and the pair demonstrated some exemplary racing to take out first and second place. O’Leary and Holguin left it in the pool for their 100m freestyle, finishing in second and fourth place. This was repeated in the Men’s category by Jonathan Rutter and veteran swimmer Declan Pang. Emily Manock then returned to the pool for an incredible Women’s MC 100m Freestyle.
Finally came the relays, and while Oxford was currently in the lead, victory was far from certain. Putting up a fantastic fight, the Women’s 4 x 100m Medley Team consisting of Esmé Briggs, Zoé Faure Beaulieu, Eva Ponting and Cayen Wang finished in second place. The Men’s relay, swam by Jackson Spry, Tobermory Mackay-Champion, Andrew Hong and Sam Nicholls, flew down the pool to finish in first place. Oxford dominated the next two relays. The Women’s 4 x 100m Freestyle saw veterans Ellie Browne and Sophie Lawrence joined by freshers Molly Aspinall and Cayen Wang, who all thundered down the pool to a win. Finally, it all came down to the Open 4 x 100m Freestyle Relay. Men’s captain Andrew Hong had made the gutsy decision to only swim in one individual event so that he could compete in both relays, a decision that came with high risk but offered the potential for high reward. It paid off spectacularly, with Max Anderson Loake, Nicholas Jones, Jonathan Rutter and Andrew Hong taking one last win for the road.
Overall, the Men’s side took a victory of 55-35 points while the Women’s side had a narrow loss of 46-44 points. However, the team came together to triumph overall, with the final points tally standing at 99 (Oxford) to 81 (Cambridge). All swimmers who competed in the Blue’s Match should be extremely proud of the result. However, the team’s success also represents the hard work of those who were not selected for the Varsity Blue’s team, whose dedication throughout the season pushed their teammates to train harder and race faster.
A big thank you must go to coach Zichen, captains Ellie Browne and Andrew Hong, and all those who came along to cheer on the team. See you in Oxford next year!
