For all you fans out there glued to the Lanelines website...

Our 800 Freestyle Relay swam four and half seconds faster than last years conference meet! Going 7:05.82 is a great start to the meet - and according to my "somewhat accurate" records that was the 5th fastest relay swim in Wabash History - and definitely the fastest in my five years!

Adam Petro - 1:45.5 (3.5 seconds under his previous LTB)

JordOn Blackwell - 1:45.9

Blaine Cooper-Surma - 1:45.8 (2.2 seconds under his previous LTB)

Elijah Sanders - 1:48.4 (20 minutes after his mile!)

Honestly though, we came out a bit sluggish in the mile - which is to be expected after 6 hours in a van, 6 hours since our last meal, and one hour of stretching and warm-up... so I believe we will swim faster tomorrow... more rest is a good thing right now.

To the guys going to DePauw -

If I learned anything tonight it is to get yourself up for your first swim... don't wait for the fast times to come to you! You have to be behind the block ready to tear that race apart.

Remember those words that Rusnak told us about Wednesday?  Those words he heard†over and over again - louder and louder each time?  Once those start echoing in your head - you'll be just fine.

Go get 'em!

-Coach

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December Invites are Here!

Once again the Little Giant Tankers head off to several December Invites... three to be exact. Our divers will take the long journey to the Wabash College Class of 1950 Natatorium where we host the Wabash Diving Classic.  They will compete in an 11 dive, championship style, one and three meter competition. †There is no avoiding how important our divers have been to our success this year. They have played a tremendous role in our wins this year - in fact, their points at both dual meets (Wittenberg) and invites (Wabash) allowed us to win! I know with the training they have been doing, and the coaching they are getting, that their focus and determination will allow them to finish up the semester in style -and break their personal bests scores!

Also, our swimmers are splitting up again - half to Kenyon for the Nike Invitational and the other half to DePauw for their invitational. Both meets have the perfect competition for this team - and offer our guys the right chances to race at their best with some rest (and a ton "on the line" ). We've won when it comes to dual meets this year, we've won our 8 team invitational, and now we need to see how this program reacts when our numbers are low and the competition is tough. I truly believe if we can continue to succeed this weekend we are going to have a very amazing Conference meet come February. For this team, the challenge now lies in finding the ability to succeed in all different situations - allowing confidence, in yourself and your team, to be the main ingredient come February.

My swimmers and divers know that come their last performances of the year, training and talent are not nearly as important as confidence, belief, and an unyielding vision for success. Simply put, this weekend will give them the opportunity to achieve individually and experience breakthrough performances - and in turn, it will help them take a team to the next level!

That is awesome!

-Coach

(pictured above Rob Fenoglio on 1 Meter and Elijah Sanders)

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We swam like warriors! (see pictures and write up on the website)

Undefeated in dual meets and Wabash Invite Champs... A perfect start to an exciting season.

PHC

(Pictures by Brock Johnson: Tom Schiltz on the 3 Meter and Kyle O'Keefe swimming the mile)

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Wabash Swimming and Diving jumped out to a 44 point lead after day one events of the Wabash Invitational! Our depth in the mile and on the boards helped us a great deal - and there were some spectacular swims along with many great dives off the 1 meter board. Elijah Sanders, Brent Graham, Craig Vetor, and Kyle O'Keefe all scored valuable points in the mile - and all were at lifetime bests or close... a very good indication of the type of training we have had this semester. †Going into a meet like this with no rest, against many of the best programs in the Midwest, and only to find us in first place after day one is very encouraging - and an exciting start to the wrap up of the non championship part of the season.

The team will continue to race aggressive and compete well on Saturday, and I look forward to seeing where the chips fall when all is said and done.

- PHC

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Wabash 121.5 Wittenberg 119.5

Tonight Wittenberg swam unbelievably - and I was amazed with the amount of heart and fight they displayed. They showed us how focus and passion can overcome talent and depth. It was a great meet to be a part of, and a great meet for us to learn from. As I look back at tonight's meet I have a sense of relief that it ended well, and also know we can do better.

I'm proud of the team's first semester dual meets (6-0). This team races well and pushes each other in practices and meets. They've found ways to win each meet and that is a great sign of their competitiveness. We have some huge challenges ahead, but if we continue to act responsibly we will be able to step up to those challenges - and live those dreams.

The 200 backstroke was huge for us tonight with Pat Laughlin's win and Peter Hewitt adding an amazing come from behind swim to take second on the last length - a swim that inspired the entire team. Adam Petro continued his winning ways with another unbelievable swim in the 200 fly (1:58.1) and Kyle O'Keefe was impressive again with a win in the 200 breast - when we needed it the most.

Now... lets keep the Bell!

- Coach

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Wabash 153 - Rose Hulman 89

After coming out blazing Friday night - and swimming with unbelievable passion - the team headed down to Rose-Hulman Saturday morning to compete against the Engineers (a program that has competed at the National Level the last 5 years in a row!). I expected the team to swim tired, which is understandable after the emotional high of beating DePauw Friday night - but more importantly, I was eager to see how they would respond when facing a program with such an outstanding national reputation.

Well, I was right about them swimming tired, but I was also pleased to see them come out aggressive. Starting out the meet one-two in the Medley Relay and 1000 Freestyle set the tone for just about everyone. This team doesn't take any situation†lightly. They have respect for all opponents, and a respect for their teammates and this program. "Nothing Less Than Your Best" is a phrase that this team is living - not just talking about.

We head to Wittenberg Friday Night before the Monon Bell game to face our first conference opponent of the year. I can't wait to see who steps up next.

PAK,

Coach

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