Men's swimming and diving poised for yet another winning season

The men's swimming program is defined by eight guiding principles, listed authoritatively on the team's own website: trust, respect, discipline, loyalty, friendship, communication, honesty, and courage. With such clear guidelines, it's no wonder that the team has been so dominant over the last few years, both in the pool and in the classroom.

A close-knit group of 58 swimmers and divers make up this year's squad. After losing just five seniors to graduation last year and adding a total of 18 freshmen to fill the void, the team is looking forward to what they hope will be a successful year.

"We definitely have a really strong returning class," junior swimmer Greg Schmidt said. "This is the best incoming freshman class out of the three years I've been here. They will make an immediate impact."

"Our freshman class is loaded with talent and will really improve our depth and speed," senior tri-captain Ed Edson said.

The Jumbo crew will start its regular season this Saturday with a meet at Clark University.

The team finished fourth in the NESCAC last year, holding a 9-1 record in the dual meets _ the head-on-head competitions with other NESCAC schools.

Last year's squad was dubbed 'A Band of Brothers' by its coach in reference to the HBO mini-series on World War II. Though this year's team hasn't been given a nickname yet, camaraderie and unity will surely be associated with the team's theme, as always.

"We are one of the closest teams on campus and I really think that helps us excel in the pool," senior tri-captain Peter Berkowitz said.

Over the past two seasons the team holds a 17-2 record in dual meets against NESCAC and other New England opponents.

"The outlook is great potential," coach Don Megerle said. "But that's just a word. They have to continue to work hard, believe in the program, have integrity about their intentions, commit to each other and trust each other."

Megerle is entering his 32nd year coaching and holds an impressive 228-81 overall career meet record. He is well known around the league and well liked by the swimmers.

Working practice schedules around his swimmers' schedules, Megerle finds himself at the office into the late hours of the night and some days start well before six in the morning. The coach's work ethic has apparently rubbed off on the team _ it is a dedicated group of men anticipating an exciting and successful season.

Led by senior tri-captains Berkowitz, Edson, and Ryan Lahey, this year's team hopes to build on last year's success and continue the tradition of excellence exhibited by Tufts and its coach.

Last year's season was defined by three new records posted by Jumbo swimmers. Seth Baron (200 Fly: 1:55.29), Tyler Duckworth (200 Breast: 2:07.72), and Richard Halpert (200 IM: 1:56.23) all begin this season holding new Tufts' records.

Duckworth, a junior swimmer (breaststroke and individual medley), was the only Jumbo to advance all the way to nationals last season, where he missed becoming an All-American by less than a second.

"It's good motivation for me this season," Duckworth said. "I'm excited for the team because I think we're going to make a run at the NESCAC title."

With all the individual talent on this team, Duckworth doesn't expect to make the trip to Emory University for Nationals alone this season.

Just as impressive is the team's performance in the classroom, consistently earning one of the top GPA's in Division III. The 2000-2001 men earned the College Swimming Coaches Association of America's Academic Team Award for having the highest cumulative grade point average among Division III teams.

Led by Coach Brad Snodgrass, the divers on the team expect to be key contributors to the team's success this season as well.