The men's swimming and diving team tomorrow will recognize 11 seniors at Hamilton Pool before its final home meet of the season, a dual contest against Wheaton.
No. 16-ranked Tufts lost hard-fought contests to MIT and Boston College last weekend, slipping to 4-3. Now, the team will try to salvage one last home victory for its senior members.
Before the meet, there will be a ceremony to honor the seniors' dedication and achievement during their four years at Tufts. Afterward, the team will attend a dinner organized by the seniors' parents, most of whom are making the trip to Medford to watch the meet. The women's team, which is also hosting Wheaton tomorrow and recognizing its seniors, will attend the dinner as well.
"The day should be for the seniors and all they've done over the four years because they really are the leadership of the team," senior quad-captain Joe Lessard said. "There are the coaches, and after that, there are the captains and the seniors who really guide the team and set the example for the younger guys."
During the dinner, the parents and athletes will watch a slideshow that includes pictures of the seniors both during their time at Tufts and as little kids.
"It's kind of just an opportunity for the seniors to reflect," Lessard said. "Out of 21, 22 years most of us have been swimming 15-plus years, since we were old enough to get put in the pool by our parents. [This event] should be a culmination of all of that."
The meet itself will conclude with the unconventional 100-yard individual medley, a tradition where all the seniors pick their own events and race each other for fun.
"It's one last chance to race at Hamilton Pool, one last chance to race in front of the home crowd," Lessard said. "It really is just another meet, but it's going to be a lot of fun diving in for one last time, and I can guarantee you that last relay we have at the end of the meet is going to be something special."
But senior Brian Canter is keeping his eyes on the big picture.
"It's a nice and nostalgic touch to have a ceremony with our parents there, but it's also important preparation for our other last meets of the season," Canter said. "We still have to focus on reaching our end goal times."
After tomorrow, only next weekend's Wheaton Invitational remains before the NESCAC Championships, which will be held at Bowdoin from Feb. 25-27.
Twenty-three swimmers will compete at the Invitational while the remaining 23 begin preparing for the final conference meet. Coach Adam Hoyt will also select one additional swimmer to join the NESCAC-tourney squad based on the performances at Wheaton.
Though the focus tomorrow will be on the seniors, one swimmer to watch is junior Owen Rood, who received the latest NESCAC Performer of the Week award for his performances against MIT and BC.
Rood had an astounding four first-place finishes against BC — in the 50- and 100-yard freestyles, the 200-yard freestyle relay and the 200-yard medley relay. He also had three second-place finishes at MIT, earning a season-best time in the 200-yard freestyle, anchoring the 200-yard medley relay and swimming in the 200-yard freestyle relay. Rood has earned All-Conference times in four events at the NESCAC Championships and will be a key factor in the Jumbos' late-season meets.
With the seniors excited for their last chance to swim in Hamilton Pool, and the underclassmen — who contributed to Tufts' ranking as the third most-improved team in Div. III college swimming — looking to finish strong, the Jumbos are well prepared to send their soon-to-be graduates off with a win.
