At the MIT Invitational, a two-day event that left the swimming and diving teams more fatigued than usual, both the men and women finished fifth.
The men collected 324.5 points, well behind national powerhouse MIT, who won the meet with 1,397.5 points.
The Polar Bears also fell to NYU (688.5), Keene State (588) and Tufts (490.5), but they outpaced Wheaton (186) and Colby (127).
The women's team totaled 316 points to beat Colby (185) and Harvard (152), but fell to Wheaton (392), Tufts (564), NYU (824), and MIT (1,308). ?
Captain Nathan Mecray '12 was the top Bowdoin finisher, coming in third place in the 50-yard freestyle in 21.03 seconds.
He also placed fifth in the 100-yard freestyle with a time of 46.86 seconds.
Chris Granata '14 also had a fifth-place finish for the Polar Bears, completing the 200-yard butterfly in 1:56.24.
Head Coach Brad Burnham noted a "great" performance by the men's 200-yard medley, as Basyl Stuyvesant '13, Mecray, captain Mac Routh '12 and William Shi '15 took third place in 1:35.76.
First year diver Thomas Kramer placed third in the 3-meter dive (218.20) and fourth in the 1-meter dive (221.45).
For the women, Caitlin Hutchinson Maddox '14 raced into fourth place in the 200-yard butterfly in a time of 2:14.39.
Maeve O'Leary '14 took sixth in the 100-yard breaststroke (1:10.04) and Helen Newton '14 was seventh in the 200-yard breaststroke (2:32.82).
Burnham said he was satisfied with these finishes, though he downplayed their importance.
"I don't put much stock in the team results at this point in the season," he said. "It was more of an individual meet for us."
Though he did not see any remarkably fast times or personal bests, Burnham said he thinks that everyone is on track.
Burnham said the fatigue and soreness of the swimmers was "appropriate for this time," as he has looked to increased yardage at practice to build endurance and strength to last the season.
Neither the men's nor the women's teams defeated both of their NESCAC competitors in the invitational, and although Tufts and Colby performed well, Burnham said that they are also in the building phase of their seasons.
"Other teams in the NESCAC are in the same place as we are, and facing NESCAC foes helps to see how much work we have to do over the winter to be ready for the second semester," he said.
Linc Rhodes '14, who had a top-five finish in the 400-yard medley relay, said this approach to the season provides benchmarks.
He said that by competing against MIT, one of the best teams in the nation, and Tufts, one of the strongest NESCAC teams, Bowdoin swimmers could get experience to help them later on.