LEXINGTON, Va. -- The Washington and Lee men's swimming team opened its season with a 153.5-108.5 victory over Centre on Saturday afternoon at Cy Twombly Pool.

Eight event wins highlighted the Generals' performances, led by senior Matt Hesser (Midlothian, Va./Governor's School), sophomore Matt Kiser (Dunwoody, Ga./Dunwoody) and first-year James Hayes (Chattanooga, Tenn./McCallie School), who all notched two individual wins.

Hayes took the top spot in the 1000 free in a time of 10:32.34 and the 500 free in 5:07.40, while Kiser finished first in the 200 free and the 100 free, clocking in at 1:50.92 and 49.69, respectively. Hesser placed first in the 100 back (55.12) and 200 back (2:00.38).

Senior David Ireland (Dayton, Ohio/Oakwood) and first-year Trenten Babcock (Belmont, Mich./Rockford) also notched the first-place finishes, with Ireland touching the wall first in the 100 fly (54.47) and Babcock finishing first in the 200 IM (2:02.33).

First-year Thomas Ferguson (Midlothian, Va./Trinity Episcopal) collected a pair of Top 2 finishes on the day, finishing second in the 200 fly (2:01.66) and the 200 IM (2:06.02). He also placed third in the 100 fly in a time of 54.69.

The 200 medley relay featuring Hesser and first-years Jake Burns (Greensboro, N.C./Greensboro Day), Andrew Botelho (Huntersville, N.C./William Amos Hough) and Ferguson finished in second place, touching in at 1:40.88. Kiser and Burns along with sophomores William Fries (Kirkwood, Mo./Kirkwood) and Harris Pritchard (Houston, Texas/Memorial) teamed up in the 400 free relay to take second place in a time of 3:19.93.

W&L returns to the pool on Friday, when it travels to Mary Washington. The meet is set to begin at 7:00 pm.

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