SEASON REVIEW-THE WOMEN

The 2004-05 season is now in the books and extends the legacy and great tradition of Dartmouth Swimming and Diving. The fall brought the excitement of seven in the Class of 2008 joining the fray. October and early November were that wonderful mix of hard training, team building, Homecoming, sorority rush, midterms and more hard training.  We faced four of our seven Ivy opponents in two weekends, competing well, but closing out fall meets with an 0-4 record. Fortunately, our classroom fortunes proved better and we once again earned team Academic All-America honors for fall term.

Our twelve-day training trip to Hawaii was one to remember. Beautiful weather every day gave us great training conditions and gave us the opportunity to traverse the island. Our days started with morning workout at the University of Hawaii where we crossed paths with swimmers from Oregon State and Rice, divers from Northeastern and our host team, Hawaii. On our weight room days, we shared space with some of the football players getting ready for their Holiday Bowl game. Before a late afternoon workout, the team found activities to fill the day -- beach days, a trip to the North Shore to watch the big wave surfers, the Pearl Harbor tour and a hike up Diamond Head. Kristin Simunovich's family hosted us for a fun day at Kailua beach and open water workout and a dinner of great food and TLC. We did Waikiki and Ala Moana Mall, doing our part to keep the Hawaii economy booming. A meet with Hawaii, Oregon State and Rice and a team biathalon where we swept our age group kept us competitively sharp.

After the holidays, a full competitive schedule awaited. We headed to the University of Rhode Island for the four-team invitational we have been attending the last 3 years. Once again we left with the title, winning seven individual events (100 back, 200 free, 500 free, 100 and 200 fly, 100 and 200 breaststroke) and all four relays. More travel to Yale to take on Yale and Penn -- the highlight swim was Lauren Betzing's win in the 200 fly -- a precursor of her varsity record setting swim at Ivies. The big snowstorm that sent New Jersey into a state of emergency kept Princeton from traveling to Hanover, so next up was our Vermont neighbors. We got into sprint mode and won a short event meet against Middlebury. Our seniors celebrated their last home meet at Karl Michael Pool with a win against the University of Vermont.

We all believe that hard works pays off and it did for the women at the Ivy League Championships. We had the fun of a battle with Cornell, and although we had the disappointment of losing that battle by 9 points, we had great successes. Three new varsity records were set: 200 Free Relay (Mariah Cunnick '06, Lizzie Rippe '07, Kristin Simunovich '06, Liz Mancuso '08), 400 Free Relay (Lizzie Rippe '07, Mariah Cunnick '06, Liz Mancuso '08, Kristin Simunovich '06) and the 200 Fly, 2:03.70, by Lauren Betzing '07. There are sixteen new entries into the All Time Top Ten.

Our thanks to all our Friends of Dartmouth Swimming and Diving for the support that makes our season special. Best wishes from all of us in Hanover, and GO GREEN.

                                                2004-05 Season Award Winners Women
                                                Outstanding Freshman: Liz Mancuso '08
                                                Outstanding Swimmer: Melissa Kern '07
                                                Ron Keenhold Outstanding Diver: Erin Bingham '05
                                                Geer Award: Laura Nelson '05
                                                Lutkus Award: Kristin Simunovich '06
                                                Coach's Award: Mariah Cunnick '06
                                                2005-06 Captains: Mariah Cunnick '06, Cary Telander '06

ON THE MEN’S FRONT

This fall term in Hanover began well, with great weather and everyone looking forward to our tri meets with Harvard and Cornell leading off our competitive season for the first time. Both the Crimson and the Big Red took it to us on Saturday, November 12^th. Harvard stomped us 223-76, while on the Cornell side of things, we only lost 200-100. Three pool records were set at the meet, two by Harvard and one by Cornell.

Next up the following weekend was our tri meet with Brown and Navy. We beat both of these teams last year and that fired them both up for us this year in Providence, RI. We started out slowly, but we’re better in the second half of the meet. Navy started out very strong in the medley relay and the freestyle events, and we couldn’t catch up. Against Brown, at one point in the meet they were 45 points ahead, but we pulled back to take the lead with just the freestyle relay to go. Unfortunately, we didn’t have the horses left to win the relay and ended up losing the meet by a close 118.5-122.5. Navy beat us handily 162-81. But our guys swam very well and we had many lifetime and season best times.

We then trained a few more days before finals and right before taking off for our winter training trip to sunny Mexico. In Mexico we trained in Oaxtepec and Acapulco. We spent our first ten days in Oaxtepec, a small town about 100 miles south of Mexico City in a vacation area called “Centro Vaccationale Oaxtepec”. Everyone stayed in cabanas, each with its own small pool. The training situation couldn’t have been better, as we had full access to their 50 meter 10 lane pool. The guys handled the workouts well even though we were about 5000 feet above sea level. About the same time we adjusted to the altitude, we left by bus for Acapulco. In Acapulco, we stayed at a hotel across the main road from the beach called Las Hamacas and trained in the IMSS facility that was built back in the 50s. But again we had full use of a 10 lane 50 meter pool.

Every year the freshmen write up a journal about our winter trip. They add their own humor to the day to day events of the trip, and you can get a good idea of what goes on during our trip. Here’s an excerpt from that journal:

December 9^th:

Training trip starts with the team stumbling onto the bus at 2^am.  Where’s Gordon Russell ’08?  He finally shows up and we’re off for our 2004 winter training trip to Mexico. The team loads up the bus and most pass out only to wake when we stop at Logan Airport in Boston, our take off point for Mexico.  We exit the bus in a daze and head into the airport. 

A long plane flight to Atlanta at 6 AM isn’t the best way to begin a two week adventure, but we do what we have to. From Atlanta, it was on to Mexico City where we arrive just past 4 PM. After exiting the plane, the team travels on a sweet bus with leg rests and passes out again. We’re just not used to these long trips.  ‘Narcoleptic’ sandwiches put everyone to sleep, and not knowing what day it is will do that too.  Some stay awake to watch Harry Potter in Spanish. 

A large figure with his arms outstretched is the first sight the rejuvenated swimmers see at Oaxtepec, our home for the next ten days.  Once we move in, it’s off to check out the pool.  The 10 minute walk up hill in central Mexico’s high elevation puts everyone out of breath.  A large stalking shadow that Greg Peterson ‘05 thinks is a puma scares him, but it turns out it’s only a small house cat. 

After a relaxing 1,000 meter practice, the team eats dinner in a small Mexican restaurant.  Everyone gets their fill for $7 US.  A hamburger was only $1.50.  Shane Foster ‘07 and Kemper Diehl ‘06 order pizza after dinner and Brent Butler ‘07 eats some flat pita-like things.  He’s content. 

Quote of the day by Mike Hipps: “Spanish ain’t so hard.”

You can find the full text on our website at: Men's Training Trips

Next was the URI invitational. We’ve been the consistent champion of that meet for the past three years, but UMass, having finished second the past three years, came to the meet looking for revenge . They beat us this year by 62.5 points. We swam and dove well and finished a strong second. At Columbia, the next day, the Lions were too much for us and beat us 141-75.

Next, we traveled to New Haven for our tri-meet with Yale and Penn. Both teams clobbered us, but our freshman diver, Andrew Berry, won the one meter diving event which provided us with our only win of the meet. The final scores were: Dartmouth 67, Yale 233; Dartmouth 102, Penn 198.

We won our last two meets of the year handily; UNH (118-88) at home and Middlebury (146-106) on the road, setting three new pool records at Middlebury in the process.

We just returned from the EISL Championships where we finished ninth. Great swims and dives by our team but not enough depth highlighted a fine season but kept us out of a higher finish. The meet concluded with Harvard winning and Princeton taking second.

Standouts for us included Mike Hipps '05 setting the school record twice in the 100 butterfly, lowering the mark to 49.43 and finishing fourth. Yale Fillingham '06 qualified for the championship finals of the 200 free in a 1:40.73 where he finished eighth. In diving, Andrew Berry '08 finished fourth in the one meter event while Evan Sparks '07 finished eighth on the three meter  board. Sean Robinson '05 swam his final event of his career in the 200 backstroke in 1:51.33 for 17th place.

Finalist for the Big Green included Robinson in the 200 IM (1:54.20) and 400 IM (4:04.38): Kemper Diehl '06 in the 50 free (21.06) and 100 free (46.57); Sparks and Dan Weisman in the one meter diving and Berry and Weisman in the three meter event; Peter Laidlaw '07 in the 1000 free (9:42.29) and 1650 free (16:27.54); Noah Zandan '05 in the 400 IM (4:17.30); John Reidy '06 in the 100 butterfly (50.74) and 200 butterfly (1:50.59); Gordon Russell in the 200 free (1:44.38) and 200 backstroke (1:54.35); Brent Butler '07 in the 100 breaststroke (1:00.48) and 200 breaststroke (2:12.01); Brandon Piper in the 100 breaststroke (1:02.15); Hipps in the 100 backstroke (50.93); Chris Mudd '06 in the 200 backstroke (1:54.85); plus our 200 medley relay of Hipps, Butler, Reidy and Diehl going 1:33.74.

With 418 total points we were well off the leaders in team score, but our guys swam with the intensity that we can use to build on for next year.