The women's swimming and diving team put in a strong effort on the road last weekend, winning 160-124 on Saturday over Wesleyan, a day after defeating Trinity 130-94.
"We had a busy weekend," coach Nancy Bigelow said. "Swimming back to back is tough. They put in a solid performance."
Swimming particularly well for the team was freshman Mika Sumiyoshi, who finished first in all three of her events. She won the 200-yard individual medley by nine seconds with a time of 2:16.17, and also won the 200 freestyle (1:59.20) and the 100 fly (1:02.57). As of January 18th, Sumiyoshi held the sixth fastest time in the NESCAC in the 200 individual medley and the 200 freestyle, and the fifth fastest time in the 100 fly. She also made the top ten in a number of other events.
Freshman Kierstyn Thayer was another important contributor in the weekend competitions, finishing first in the 100 backstroke (1:04.86) and second in the 100 freestyle (58.35). Thayer has the 14th fastest time in the NESCAC in the 100 backstroke. Another freshman to score big for the team was Amanda Bloom, who registered a 26.76 in the 50 freestyle.
Senior co-captain Kristin Horton swam to victory in the 100 breaststroke in 1:12.23 and holds the 13th fastest time in the NESCAC in that event, as well as the eighth fastest time in the 200 breaststroke.
As has been the case for most of the season , the divers played an important role in the team's success. Freshman Beth Wecksell continued to lead the group, winning the 1-meter diving competition with a score of 241.57, a huge improvement from her score of 183.60 in the Jumbos' December meet against Bowdoin. Also improving her score was sophomore Angela Russo (226.72), who placed second, an improvement of 77.54 points from her performance against Bowdoin.
During Friday's win against Trinity, Sumiyoshi dominated with first place finishes in the 100 freestyle (55.97) and the 400 individual medley (4:52.13). Bloom won important points for the team with a first place finish in the 200 freestyle (2:03.87), as did junior Joan Vollero in the 100 backstroke (1:05.97).
Although Tufts won both meets, many of its swimmers' times were slower than they had been earlier in the season. In explaining the slow down, Bigelow pointed to an assortment of illnesses, including head and chest colds, from which her swimmers are suffering. The sicknesses are debilitating to the team, she said, as they take away from crucial training time.
"The kids are exhausted and sick," Bigelow said. "Right now it is mind over matter. We need to stay mentally tough in the water and rest out of the water."
Another factor was a recent week of intensive training in Aruba, where the team spent more than a week, swimming twice a day.
"I was not really happy with my times [at the Wesleyan meet]," Sumiyoshi said, although she thought the Aruba training was useful. "The trip definitely had an impact on everyone," she said. "It was the most difficult and intense training I have ever had."
Many NESCAC teams use the week of training to prepare for the remainder of the season. And, though the hard conditioning training detracts from performances in the following meets, it benefits the swimmers when the NESCAC championships come around on the weekend of February 16th. Most of the fastest times in the NESCAC top twenty-five were recorded in the beginning of December.
"This is where it is all going," Bigelow said. "This is the reason why we have done everything all year. The people who are going to qualify for nationals will do it at this meet."
The team has a few more weeks to go before the NESCACs and will continue to train hard and try to get healthy. This Saturday, the Jumbos will host Bates at 1:00 p.m. in Hamilton pool. On Tuesday, Tufts travels to MIT.
