CLEVELAND, Mississippi – The Delta State men's swimming and diving team fell to Alabama in its season opener Friday at the DSU Aquatics Center. Cody Lavoie earned a victory in the 100-breaststroke, while Giulio Brugnoni claimed the 100-backstroke.
 
Off The Starting Blocks:

• Opponent: Alabama
• Date/Time: Sept. 15, 2017 | 1 p.m.
• Location: Delta State Aquatics Center
• Score: Alabama 231 | Delta State 69
• Short Story: Delta State had 10 top-three finishes against the Tide, including two victories.
• Get Social: @DeltaStateSWD

How it happened:

• Giulio Brugnoni made it an Italian sweep of the 100 back, following Martelli's win with one of his own in the men's race.  The freshman finished nearly three seconds ahead of the rest of the field; his time of 48.71was the ninth fastest in school history and made the NCAA-B cut. Brugnoni also finished fourth in the 100-yard butterfly and led off the third-place 400-yard medley and 400-yard freestyle relays.
• Senior Cody Lavoie had an individual victory against the Tide as well, winning the 100-yard breaststroke by nearly a second.  Later in the meet, he placed third in the 200 back.
• On the boards, junior Nic Martin led the Statesmen, as he was runner-up in the 3-meter competition.
• Nathan Sawicki led the way for Delta State in the distance events, as he was third in the 1000-Freestyle.

Notables:

•  This year marks the fifth consecutive time Delta State has faced Alabama to start the season.
• 11 Statesmen made their first appearance for the Green-and-White.

A Look Ahead:

• The Statesmen and return to action Friday, September 29, when they host Rhodes College at the DSU Aquatics Center.  The meet is scheduled to begin at 7 p.m. CT.