Swimming team falls, but solo students rise to success

Freshman Anne Edwards set a school record at last weekend’s swimming and diving competitions, but the men’s and women’s teams still lost to Denison University and Kenyon College.

The two dual meets were their last preconference meets of the season, and they had a few first place individual finishes, showing they remain competitive against the Division III’s top two teams.

At the Saturday morning meet against Denison, Edwards set the school record in the 1000 yard freestyle with a time of 10:55.82, placing third in the competition.

The previous record was 10:59.00 and was set by Whitney Snow in 2006.

Edwards, who previously broke school records in both the 500 and 1650 yard freestyles, said she feels like she has accomplished her immediate goals, but still strives to swim faster.

Overall, Edwards said she has been pleased with her season.

“As a freshman, on the swim team, it’s hard to adapt to new people and the training that you’ve never experienced,” she said. “However, now I feel like a member of the team and have contributed my share of work for the team.”

In terms of diving, senior Anthony Peddle scored 249.75 points in the 1-meter competition.

The men’s team also had some impressive swims at Denison. Senior Sean Anthony placed first in the 200 yard breaststroke with a time of 2:13.16, and freshman Greyson Goodwin earned the first place spot in the 500 yard freestyle with a time of 4:53.48.

Junior Matthew Mahoney placed second after Goodwin with a time of 4:57.82.

Mahoney said he was pleased with his time, and said he thinks the season has been successful for the team as a whole, “given all of the season and personal bests everyone has been getting in their races.”

“All the extra yards and practice we have put in this year are really starting to show and pay off at this point in the season,” he said.

“Everyone has been going out faster in the beginning of their races while being able to close and finish their races at a fast pace. Overall, everyone seems pretty excited to compete at conference and show the rest of the league how much we have improved since last year.”

The Bishops are part of a notoriously fast conference of Division III swimming, and hope to improve their rank from previous years.

“My strategy going into conference is to rely on the techniques that have been practiced and drilled all season long,” Mahoney said.

“This, in combination with the increased endurance from our more challenging practices this season, will help me avoid any feelings of nervousness and focus on swimming my races to the best of my abilities.”

Edwards said she is nervous about her competitors, but plans to focus on personally improving her times.

“My strategy is to swim my own race,” she said.  “To me, it’s more rewarding to see a best time than placing in an event. It’s also my first experience at conference, so I want to have fun and take in the full experience.”

At the meet Friday night against Kenyon, senior Katie Helfrich finished first in the 200 yard breaststroke with a time of 2:29.76, out touching Kenyon’s Meaghan McLaughlin by almost four seconds.

Other standouts for the Bishops included sophomore Emmalee Nerantzis, who took second in both the 1000 yard freestyle and the 200 yard butterfly, and senior Olivia Gillison, placed second in the 50 and 100 yard freestyles.

On the men’s side, senior Taylor Smith finished second in the 200 yard IM with a time of 1:59.99, falling short of first place by just over a tenth of a second.

This year the conference meet will be held on Feb. 12-15 at Denison University’s Trumbull Aquatic Center.