MARLBOROUGH, Mass.— Seven members of the Babson College men's swimming and diving team were recognized for success in the classroom when they were named to the New England Women's and Men's Athletic Conference (NEWMAC) Academic All-Conference team on Wednesday.
Representing Babson on the All-Academic Team were seniors
Pat Anutarasoti (Bangkok, Thailand),
Matthew D'Elia (Old Bridge, N.J.) and
Brett Sheldrick (Plantsville, Conn.), junior
Zackary Cheung (Monterey Park, Calif.), and sophomores
David Krol (Grafton, Wis.),
Anthony Taslakov (Sherborn, Mass.) and
Jason Zeliph (Voorheesville, N.Y.).
Anutarasoti, D'Elia and Sheldrick received the honor for the third consecutive year, Cheung is a two-time selection, and the others are first-time honorees. Academic all-conference honorees must have met the following criteria: earned a minimum cumulative GPA of 3.5 on a 4.0 scale after the 2024 fall semester, achieved second year academic status, and been a member of the varsity team for the entire season.
A Business major, Anutarasoti has been one of the top swimmers in the NEWMAC the past four seasons. He turned in his best performance this season when he captured the individual title in the 100 breaststroke in a program record of 55.10 seconds, becoming Babson's first men's swimming conference champion since 2002. He also placed fourth in the 50 free and 12th in the 100 free and was a member of the fourth-place 400 free relay team. Anutarasoti ends his career as the program record holder in the 50 (25.57) & 100 breast (55.10), 50 (22.36) & 100 butterfly (48.46), and four relays (200 and 400 medley, 200 and 400 free).
A Strategy & Consulting major, D'Elia has been a consistent contributor for four years for the Beavers. His top performance this season came in the 200 butterfly where he took fifth place at the NEWMAC championships and posted a program record time of 1:52.48. He placed eighth in the 100 fly at this year's NEWMACs in a time of 50.40 seconds, and he also owns the third-fastest time in program history in the 100 fly with a 50.32 set back in 2023. D'Elia swam on Babson's 200 free relay B team that finished 13th in 1:46.10.
A Finance major, Sheldrick competed in the 50 and 100 free and 100 breast at this year's championships. He placed 39th in the 100 free in a time of 53.21 second and finished 50th in the 50 free in 24.20 seconds. He also competed in the 200 and 500 free events back in 2022 and the 50 and 100 backstroke in 2023.
A Marketing major, Cheung missed competing in swimming this season while studying abroad. He was a team contributor last season in backstroke and IM events when he posted the third-best times for the Beavers in the 100 back (53.62) and 200 back (2:01.28), fifth-fastest in the 50 back and sixth-best in the 200 IM (1:56.58).
A Business major, Krol had a strong showing in the diving events in his first NEWMAC Championships appearance. He earned his first podium spot in the 3-meter when he finished runner-up with a score of 480.80 points, and he brought home third place on the 1-meter board with a score of 469.50. He advanced to the NCAA Diving regionals, where he finished eighth on the 3-meter (442.80) and ninth on 1-meter (418.35).
A Consulting major, Taslakov capped an outstanding season with a terrific performance at the NEWMAC Championships, where he earned two All-Conference honors and set five program records. He finished runner-up in the 200 free and 200 back and fourth in the 200 IM as well as swimming a leg on a pair of relay teams (400 and 800 free relay) the produced top four finishes. He ends the season as the program record holder in the 200 free (1:38.71), 200 back (1:48.76), and 200 IM (1:51.83) in addition to the 400 medley and 400 and 800 medley relays.
A Finance major, Zeliph completed a strong season for the Beavers in distance freestyle events. He finished in 22nd place in the 500 free at the NEWMAC Championships in a personal-best time of 4:58.47 and placed 15th in the 1650 in a personal best time of 17:30.33. He also came in 24th place in the 200 free in a season-best time of 1:50.35.
Babson finished with a 7-3 record in dual meets this winter and placed fourth in the team standings at the NEWMAC Championships with 704 points, the program's third-highest total since 2002.
