The atmosphere was charged with anticipation at the outset of Saturday’s swimming and diving meet. The men’s and women’s teams faced SUNY Geneseo, one of their primary rivals.
Spectators and athletes alike felt the excitement throughout the meet. Everyone involved worked hard, but UR was unable to achieve a victory in the end.
Women’s Swimming and Diving
The women’s swimming and diving teams suffered a disappointing loss this weekend against Geneseo. All of the women put forth their best effort, but were unable to defeat their strong rivals.
The women lost by a narrow margin, 157-141, making their record 2-1.
In the diving portion of the meet, senior Patricia McHale kept up her record of high-quality performances. This win marks her third straight week of success.
“Rochester divers really have a lot of talent,” freshman Dan Balk said. “All of the girls seemed to have performed very well on Saturday.”
Leading the swimmers for UR was three-time winner junior Kari Joyce. Joyce destroyed the competition in the 200-yard freestyle, the 50-yard freestyle and the 200-yard backstroke. This strong performance has been mirrored by several others this season.
Junior Michelle Gruen also put forth an excellent performance. A strong distance swimmer, she won both the 1000-yard freestyle and the 500-yard freestyle.
Sophomore Danielle Scherry followed Gruen closely in both the 1000-yard freestyle and the 500-yard freestyle. In these events, Scherry managed to pull out second place finishes.
Scherry claimed a win in the 200-yard butterfly. She was a strong competitor in all of her events.
The women will be looking for victories at St. Lawrence University and Union College this weekend.
Men’s Swimming and Diving
UR men had an experience similar to the women this weekend, suffering defeat despite a strong performance. There were many winners among the men, making the meet a competitive one.
The final score for the meet was 171-117, which gives the men a record of 1-2.
A new talent, freshman Bruce Maki, led the men in wins. He won the 1000-yard freestyle, the 500-yard freestyle and the 200-yard backstroke. The team can expect much more from this new talent over the next four years.
“I was really impressed with Bruce Maki’s performance,” Balk said. “He’s only a freshman and he’s already winning multiple races.”
Junior Zach Freed was the runner-up in three races. He followed Maki to the wall in the 1000-yard freestyle and the 500-yard freestyle. Freed also closely followed sophomore Jonathan Dennison in the 200-yard individual medley.
Junior Craig Matt, who has already displayed his talents in previous competitions this season, joined his victorious teammates with wins in the 200-yard freestyle and the 200-yard butterfly.
Senior and diver Ted Elton had success similar to that of his teammates this weekend, capturing first on the one-meter board and third on the three-meter board.
The men will accompany the women’s team to St. Lawrence and Union College this weekend.
Myers can be reached at smyers@campustimes.org.
