Johnnies hope to make a splash this season

On Oct. 21, the SJU swim and dive team competed in their season opener at the Warner Palaestra Pool. The Johnnies recorded a 178-99 victory over Macalester, winning all 14 individual events.

With meets almost every weekend until the end of the semester, the team is looking forward to their season ahead.

The Johnnies will compete at home this Friday in a dual meet against Hamline.

Senior captain Travis Teeter said the team is looking incredible this year with lots of incoming and returning talent.

“We brought in a large freshman class this year that is full of talented, hard working guys. They all complement our team very well and their energy is felt by everyone in the program,” Teeter said.

Teeter is excited to watch the team’s hard work and commitment come full circle at meets and can’t wait to see what the season has in store.

“Our team is loaded with talent. When you mix that with the hard work and all the positive energy that engulfs this team, great things happen,” Teeter said.

The team has been training rigorously since September with three “two-a-day” practices each week, meaning the team fits eight practices into five days.

“Our athletes push each other day in and day out to be better. We will continue doing this throughout the season as we prepare for our ultimate goal, a MIAC Championship,” Teeter said.

Junior Colby Kern was also very excited with the team’s big win on Saturday. With many strong returners and a very talented first-year class, Kern believes the team will be very strong this year.

“We had a lot of guys do much better than we would have thought at this point in our season, which is always great to see. It is pretty clear we are getting stronger as a team, so we have a lot to look forward to,” Kern said.

Kern enjoys the many hours he gets to spend with his teammates as well as getting to see their hard work and dedication pay off.

“All that time together practicing, competing and being around each other creates bonds that will hold for much longer than the time we are on campus. Therefore, seeing everyone’s hard work pay off with fast times and great scores makes it so much more special,” Kern said.

Senior captain Sam Anderson said the team was ready to show everything they’ve been working towards in practice.

“This first part of the season we’ve just been training, and it has definitely been the hardest of my four years on the team. [Head coach] Ben [Gill] is definitely trying to push us the extra mile this year,” Anderson said.

Anderson has high hopes for his senior season, which includes capturing the MIAC title from Gustavus, who has been the dominant No. 1 for a while.

“We’re currently sitting in a solid second place, but the opportunity this year is really big as we’re inching closer and closer to a MIAC title,” Anderson said.

Senior Scott Spangler felt really good about the effort they put into the meet.

“It’s an optimistic starting point to have a good picture of where we can go from here and how we can improve,” Spangler said.

Spangler said the team has been pushed harder this year than they ever have in the time he’s been on the team, which has contributed to the dominant performance displayed at the meet.

The team has done more endurance and breath control work early on than in previous seasons to help prepare for the start of the season.

Spangler is very excited for his senior year and everything the season has to offer.

“I’m really excited to see the younger swimmers grow and see how they fall into their place on the team. Just in the first couple of months, it’s been exciting to see some of the first-years figuring out what their strengths are and how they need to adapt to this new environment,” Spangler said.

Gill felt there were many impressive individual performances for the first meet of the season.

“It’s going to be a great season. The guys look really good for this time of the year. The returners are looking good, and we also have several incoming first-years that look great as well,” Gill said.

Gill said the team’s goal for the season is to be competitive at the MIAC Championships.

“We are also poised to potentially qualify for NCAAs, which we haven’t done with swimmers since 2011, so that would also be very exciting for our team,” Gill said.

Gill really enjoys coaching his athletes and being part of the close-knit team.

“I look forward to helping the young men that are a part of our team achieve their individual goals and help push our team towards our team goals as well. It’s always fun to be around people who challenge themselves to be their best each and every day,” Gill said.