Men's swimming
at Tufts, Thursday night
Tufts 152
Babson 209
The men's swimming and diving team will face its first tough NESCAC test tomorrow afternoon when it squares off against the Bowdoin Polar Bears.
The Jumbos, who are 2-1 overall (2-0, NESCAC), will be looking to feed off of two strong meets against Connecticut College and Boston College and some difficult training.
"We have had a pretty tough week of practice so everyone is feeling a little tired," senior quad-captain Mike Rochette said. "But we're excited to swim against Bowdoin [tomorrow], and we are definitely going into the meet expecting to swim fast and come out with the win."
The Jumbos' main focus for the weekend will be to continue to cut down on their splits and overall times and work on technique for tougher meets as the season rolls on.
"We're looking to continue to work on our races and perfecting our strokes right now," senior quad-captain Chris Valente said. "For me personally, it's all about fine tuning my race, and finding my strengths and weaknesses so I can keep improving."
The Jumbos and the Polar Bears did not oppose each other last season due to a snowstorm, but two seasons ago Tufts won handily, 162-117. In addition, the Jumbos cruised past the Bears at the NESCAC tournament last winter, compiling 1290 total points to Bowdoin's 544.
"I am very excited about the meet this weekend," junior Brett Baker said. "We didn't face off against Bowdoin last year, so it will be good to swim against them in a dual meet this season. It is always fun to see what kind of competition we have to look forward to at the NESCAC meet at the end of February."
Baker noted that the team had pretty standard practice sessions this week, not altering their training this early in the season. This week saw more general workouts at practice, whereas later in the season, the workouts will become more tailored to each swimmer.
"It is very early in the season and we still need to develop a strong aerobic base," he said.
Tomorrow's face-off against Bowdoin will mark the first home NESCAC dual meet for the Jumbos, who will look to use the home pool advantage to its fullest.
"Swimming at Hamilton [pool] is always great," Valente said. "There is definitely a home field advantage to have friends and fans watching and cheering up in the stands."
Tufts will be swimming with its full team for the first time all season tomorrow, as sophomore Greg Bettencourt, who has been battling a severe ear infection, and junior Jason Kapit will hit the pool for the first time this year.
The meet will provide a chance for the Jumbos freshmen to continue to adjust to collegiate swimming. The veterans are confident that the newcomers, including Baris Piyade, Sean Sullivan and Chris Wallace, will continue to swim well and help the team to victory.
"It is always hardest for the freshmen, but they are doing a great job of adjusting to college life and taking on the challenges of the student-athlete," Valente said. "They are an amazing asset to our team."
Tufts will be competing against Bowdoin at 1 p.m. in the Hamilton Pool.
After Bowdoin, the Jumbos will wrap up their three meet home stand a week from Saturday against the always-tough Brandeis Judges.
