Swimming and diving wins with ease

Author: Molly West

The Middlebury swimming and diving teams started off the new year victoriously with strong wins over the Mules of Colby College on Jan. 10.

The men won 181-89, and the women 179-101. Last year, both teams comfortably beat the Mules, and Mary Roberts '09 explained prior to the competition that "these meets allow us to experiment with new lineups and have people swimming different events than they typically would."

The teams trained in Florida after Christmas, where they swam on average 15,000 meters a day - equivalent to almost 10 miles. Although the training in Florida put the team in great shape, Kevin O'Rourke '09 fearfully expected "most of the team to be pretty sore and broken down" because of the intensive training. However, nobody could sense the soreness of the team on Saturday, as the Panthers swam with strength and confidence throughout the meet.

On the men's side, Zach Woods '09 had a strong performance, placing first in the 50-meter backstroke, second in the 200-yard backstroke and second in the 100-yard inter-medley. The rookie men's swimmers also impacted the results, as Kazu Asaga '12 came in first in the 50-yard butterfly, followed by teammate Adam Schaffer '12. Nick Daly '12 also put forth an impressive performance, coming in first in the 50-yard freestyle and second in the 100-yard freestyle.

On the diving board, Brooks Farrar '11 remained on top, placing first in the 3- and 1-meter dives. Jack Dinning '11 followed Farrar and added to the scoreboard, coming in second in the 1-meter dive.

The Middlebury men also took home the 400-meter relay, comprised of Schuyler Beeman '10, Schaffer, Mac Staben '11 and Daly. Overall, the men ended the day successfully and went home to rest for the following day's competition against Bates.

The women also displayed a strong performance on Saturday. Emily McDonald '11 competed particularly well, placing first in the 50-yard freestyle, first in the 50-yard butterfly and second in the 100-yard butterfly. Alyssa Ha '11 also performed excellently, placing first in the 100-yard freestyle and butterfly, and first in the 400-yard inter-medley. Katie Soja '10 returned from abroad as strong as ever, placing first in the 500-yard freestyle and third in the 400-yard inter-medley.

The Middlebury women divers - Lena Halliwell '12, Meagan Collins '12, Bobbi Heidbreder '09, and Susan Read '09 - swept the diving board results, further contributing to the Panthers' margin of victory over the mules. The women left the pool with success and began to mentally prepare for the meet against Bates the following day.

The swimming and diving teams are away competing at Hamilton next weekend where they hope to build on their success. O'Rourke explained that "the team chemistry right now is incredible," adding that "[Assistant swimming coach] Andy Weinberg is an incredible addition to this team. He fell right into our program and has elevated people's work ethic and encouraged people to try harder."

With strong team chemistry and a respected coaching staff, the Middlebury swimming and diving teams clearly have the capability for continued success.