The Blue Wave is in the deep end of their season with SUNYACs fast approaching. The team has had a successful season so far, which culminated in their winning performance at the Geneseo Invitational.
After dominating RIT 196-104 in a dual meet, the women’s team went on to win the Geneseo Invitational as well, with more than 15 first and second-place finishes.
Juniors Noelle Staso and Deidra Osula led the team with strong performances; the pair finished first in the 200-yard breaststroke and the 50-yard freestyle, respectively. Both went on to join junior Celeste Pace and sophomore Megan Palmer to win the 200-yard medley relay, and then combined with junior Maddie Knight and junior Kelley Lennon to win the 200-yard freestyle relay.
Junior Lauren Siegal, who finished first and second in the 200-yard freestyle and 100-yard butterfly respectively, explained, “we had an invitational last weekend, that went really well. We got to swim some events that we won't swim at SUNYACs, which was really fun. Some people could swim their ‘on’ events one more time before the big championship.”
The men’s team also prevailed over RIT 163-134, going on to win the Geneseo Invitational with 17 first and second-place finishes.
Junior Will Eng took home three first-place finishes including the 200-yard IM and 100-yard backstroke. Eng also worked with first-year Sam Matthews, senior Mitchell Phelps and senior Kaz Sampson to win the 200-yard medley relay. Matthews also won the 200-yard freestyle and took second in the 100-yard freestyle and 50-yard freestyle.
First-year Jack Cimorelli, who won the 100-yard breaststroke, said “[The Geneseo Invitational] was a good meet for us. We didn't rest for it at all because we have SUNYACs next week, so we just trained right through [the meet].”
The team is hoping to keep their momentum going into SUNYACs by staying consistent and tapering down their workouts to get their bodies in peak condition to compete
Siegal said, “So now we're starting to do what's called taper, where it means that we keep our intensity, but we are shortening our practices. We're cutting out our lifts. We're preparing ourselves for the big meet next week.”
The team is hoping to bring home SUNYAC wins on both the men’s and women’s sides and continue their winning streak.
When it comes to the teams’ strengths and weaknesses, Cimorelli says their leadership is a strength.
“I think our leadership [is a strength] because we have two really good captains this year, John Wilson and Matt Matera. I think they've pulled the team in a good direction this year,” said Cimorelli.
Siegal says that on the women’s side, having intersession training together really strengthened their bond which she feels helps them as a team.
Siegal and Cimorelli recommend keeping an eye out for strong performances from Sam Matthews in the 100-yard butterfly, as well the women’s 200-yard butterfly relay squad.
After SUNYACs the team’s goal is to have a strong performance at nationals in North Carolina, which is the same location they were last year. This location presents a challenge due to a New York state travel ban that prevents the team from staying in North Carolina, so they stay in Virginia and commute over an hour to the facility where they compete which can be draining, but they plan to face the challenge head-on and push through it.