The Syracuse men’s swimming and diving team had history on its side going into Saturday’s meet against Seton Hall, but the Orangemen’s 11-year winning streak crumbled as the Pirates swam to a 136-106 victory at Webster Pool.

Even with the help of the diving team’s 32-5 victory, SU (4-4) couldn’t overcome Seton Hall’s depth and speed. Down, 54-39, at the first intermission, the Orangemen held an emergency closed-door meeting, presumably to plan a comeback. Although SU came close to regaining the lead several times, it seemed perpetually one stroke behind.

‘It’s a tough go,’ Syracuse head coach Lou Walker said. ‘We’ve had a tough stretch here for the guys. Time-wise, I think we’re competing pretty well, but we’re just not winning the tough races.’

‘When you score it out, if one or two races went the other way, it could have been a different story,’ Seton Hall head coach Ron Farina said. ‘But our guys were really up for the meet.’

The Orangewomen dominated their side of the meet with a 149-77 blowout of a less-talented Pirates team, which also featured much less depth. The 72-point margin marked the Orangewomen’s biggest victory since Nov. 2, when they defeated three teams by more than 100 points each.

In several events, Seton Hall was unable to field enough swimmers. That problem was compounded by the Pirates’ poor performance in the water. In the women’s 200-meter backstroke, one Seton Hall swimmer went up against three Orangewomen and finished last by nearly 10 seconds.

Junior Elyse McDonough led the Orangewomen (7-1) with two individual first-place finishes and anchored the winning 400-yard medley relay team.

Seton Hall is now done with regular-season meets and has almost three weeks off before the Big East Championships. Syracuse, meanwhile, still faces Villanova on Saturday. Because the Pirates’ season ends a week before SU’s, they’re in a different, more advanced stage of conditioning.

‘They’re rested and shaved and ready to go,’ Walker said of the Pirates, ‘and we’re three weeks from that.’

In the next few weeks, the Syracuse swimmers will alter their workout schedules to provide the burst they need to beat Villanova and succeed at the Big East Championships.

‘We’re focused on the prize,’ Walker said, ‘and the prize is the Big East meet. That’s where we want to be at our best.’

Published on February 2, 2003 at 12:00 pm