The 2014-15 swimming and diving season for UMBC has reached its halfway mark. Both the men’s and women’s teams are off to a strong start for their season, and the swimmers times keep improving every meet.
The men’s swim team has 11 new freshman who are putting solid times on the board each meet, and are currently 5-1 in the season. The men’s team is very strong in their relays this season, putting up points from the 200 medley and 400 freestyle relays. Sophomore Gregor Sporlein, and freshman teammate Nikola Trajkovic have been top competitors for the men’s team and are athletes to watch for the rest of the season.
Head coach, Chad Cradock, feels that the team is ahead of where they were this time last season.
“We’re progressing forward, we are proud of our athletes, they are working really hard, and I feel that we’ve set ourselves up to be better at the end of the season than we were last year. Our athletes are very driven and their academics are great, they’re really staying on top of things and becoming the whole student athlete which is very important.”
However, there are still things that they can improve on. Cradock said “we just need to work on remembering the small details on a daily basis, and those small details will add up. We don’t have very many weak points, this team is probably the easiest team I’ve ever coached.”
Cradock’s main goal for his team is to win championships this season. “We will do whatever it takes to be prepared for the end of the season so that we can win the championship. We will continue to train hard and keep doing team building things to keep our team uplifted before championships.”
Like the men’s team, the women’s swim team has added 10 new freshman to their roster and they are continuing to improve their times every meet. Currently the women’s team is 4-1. Sophomores Emily Escobedo and Lauren Day, as well as freshman Allie Caulfield, have been top performers for the women’s side this season, and are athletes to watch for the women’s swim team.
Overall the men’s and women’s swimming and diving teams are off to a great start for their season. Hopefully they will train and work hard, as coach Cradock made a point of emphasis, and keep the momentum going for the rest of the season so that they can compete for and win championships. There next competition will be in Fairfax, VA at George Mason University in the George Mason Invite.
