As the school year comes back in full swing, the men’s and women’s swimming & diving teams look to start their intense five-month athletic seasons off strong. The Maroons hope to make a profound statement this Saturday against Denison, Northwestern, and University of Illinois at Chicago.
The team will turn to their strong group of upperclassmen to carry them to a win as well as their large group of extremely talented first-years. On the men’s side, the Maroons will likely turn to fourth-year Matthew Veldman, who owns six school records for butterfly and team relays, as well as fourth-year Thomas Meek, who currently has seven school records for freestyle and team relays. Similarly, second-year Kevin Ku, second-year Alex Lin, and third-year Mantim Lee, among others, look to continue their impressive collegiate careers this season.
Swimming is not where it ends for this talented team as they are scheduled to put up a fight in diving as well. Leading the men’s diving team is second-year Dean Boures, who looks to raise the bar higher after All-American athletes Anthony Restaino and Matthew Staab graduated last year. As they chase success, the Maroons will rely on these few leaders to carry the way.
On the women’s front, the Maroons look to stroke their way to victory in order to reach their goal of a Division III Championship. Looking to obtain a quality victory, the ladies will turn to the likes of second-year Melissa Bischoff, who has the school records for 100-yard backstroke and the 400-yard medley relay, and third-year Maya Scheidl who possesses six school records for freestyle and teams relays. Many underclassmen look to make their mark in the first meet of the season as well.
Second-year Monica Kieff leads the women’s diving team into the season with high expectations.
As individual swimmers and divers hope to prove themselves, they acknowledge the importance of working as a team to achieve their full potential. Kevin Ku expresses his expectations for the season, “As a team, we are hoping to do better than last year, which means winning UAA for the men, and hoping to place higher than 14th at nationals this year”.
The fast-paced season will begin at 1 p.m. on Saturday against Denison, Northwestern, and University of Illinois at Chicago at Gerald Ratner Athletics Center.
