Our team picked up wins against Guilford and Randolph today to close out the dual meet season. Only championship swim meets remain in the 08-09 season. The two wins push our record to 11-3. 11 wins is a new standard for most wins in a season for the Lady Yellow Jacket swimmers. In addition, our swimmers won the Yellow Jacket Invitational against Division I and II competition, have posted 4 new school records, 7 Estes Aquatic Center pool records, and nearly 70 lifetime best times already this year...all untapered (and for the last few weeks unshaved as well). Really looking forward to ODACs in 12 days.
Meet Results are posted on the website.
Saturday, January 31, 2009
Another One Bites the Dust
Another school record, that is. Earlier tonight against Mary Washington and Hood, our 200 medley relay team of Hallie Stewart, Kellianne Mullin, Shafer Busch, and Sarah Almond set a new school record in a time of 1:52.63. Shafer had a 26.37 fly split on that, and Sarah brought it home in 24.26! Not too shabby for 2 weeks out from Championships....and we know that relay can go faster.
The overall final score was not important in the meet, and was not reflective of our efforts, so I'm not gonna post it here. The more important part was that we stepped up and raced against a very strong and deep Mary Washington team. I wanted to see our swimmers COMPETE, and in that respect, I was pleased. Unfortunately for us, many of the close races went in favor of them. We'll have to keep working on that.
We picked up 2 individual wins on the day. Lara O'Brien in the 1000 (11:05.19) and Sarah Almond in the 50 (25.19).
Other highlights were Brianna Lovell getting a new best time in the 2IM (2:23.77), Hallie going the fastest 200 free of her college career (2:03.65), Victoria Cooper closing in on the 30.00 barrier in the 50 (30.57), Shafer going her fastest 100 fly in 2 years (1:01.57), Sarah almost tracking down a probable NCAA competitor in the final yards of the 100 free (55.34), and Corinne Campbell going out hard and taking 6 seconds off her best 500 (5:28.75).
We're back in Ashland now for a short layover (I'm writing this at almost 3 am) before hitting the road for Guilford College in Greensboro in the morning. Back to back meets. Good preparation for that 6-sessions-in-3-days meet we have coming up VERY soon...
The overall final score was not important in the meet, and was not reflective of our efforts, so I'm not gonna post it here. The more important part was that we stepped up and raced against a very strong and deep Mary Washington team. I wanted to see our swimmers COMPETE, and in that respect, I was pleased. Unfortunately for us, many of the close races went in favor of them. We'll have to keep working on that.
We picked up 2 individual wins on the day. Lara O'Brien in the 1000 (11:05.19) and Sarah Almond in the 50 (25.19).
Other highlights were Brianna Lovell getting a new best time in the 2IM (2:23.77), Hallie going the fastest 200 free of her college career (2:03.65), Victoria Cooper closing in on the 30.00 barrier in the 50 (30.57), Shafer going her fastest 100 fly in 2 years (1:01.57), Sarah almost tracking down a probable NCAA competitor in the final yards of the 100 free (55.34), and Corinne Campbell going out hard and taking 6 seconds off her best 500 (5:28.75).
We're back in Ashland now for a short layover (I'm writing this at almost 3 am) before hitting the road for Guilford College in Greensboro in the morning. Back to back meets. Good preparation for that 6-sessions-in-3-days meet we have coming up VERY soon...
Sunday, January 25, 2009
Sweet Briar Recap
Our team may be a little battered and bruised right now, but that hasn't kept the swimmers in the water from continuing to let the good times roll. We headed over to Sweet Briar yesterday afternoon and came home with a 165-95 win. Though the meet was in short course meters, we still had a lot of impressive swims, and the converted times indicate that the ladies put up 6 lifetime bests. Leading the way in that department, as she has done on several occasions, was Tracy Spurrier, who (through her converted times) posted 3 lifetimes bests in the 800 free, 100 back, and 400 free.
Here were the event winners on the day:
200 Medley Relay: Marlene Graf, Kellianne Mullin, Shafer Busch, Sarah Almond - 2:10.77
800 Free: Lara O'Brien - 9:47.25
100 Back: Marlene Graf - 1:12.02
100 Breast: Kellianne Mullin - 1:20.64
200 Fly: Corinne Campbell - 2:32.05
50 Free: Sarah Almond - 28.68
100 Free: Sarah Almond - 1:02.09
200 Back: Marlene Graf - 2:33.37
200 Breast: Kellianne Mullin - 2:54.54
400 Free: Lara O'Brien - 4:46.77
100 Fly: Corinne Campbell - 1:11.44
400 IM: Lara O'Brien - 5:20.85 (just missed pool record held by R-MC's Erin Ewalt)
200 Free Relay: Shafer, Marlene, Corinne, Sarah - 1:57.05
Next weekend is the final weekend for meets before we head into championship season. Friday night, we'll be up the road in Fredericksburg to take on Mary Washington and Hood. I'm looking forward to some great races against a strong Mary Washington team. The next morning, we'll hit the road again to go swim Guilford and Randolph in North Carolina.
We're down to 19 days until the ODAC Championships begin...
Here were the event winners on the day:
200 Medley Relay: Marlene Graf, Kellianne Mullin, Shafer Busch, Sarah Almond - 2:10.77
800 Free: Lara O'Brien - 9:47.25
100 Back: Marlene Graf - 1:12.02
100 Breast: Kellianne Mullin - 1:20.64
200 Fly: Corinne Campbell - 2:32.05
50 Free: Sarah Almond - 28.68
100 Free: Sarah Almond - 1:02.09
200 Back: Marlene Graf - 2:33.37
200 Breast: Kellianne Mullin - 2:54.54
400 Free: Lara O'Brien - 4:46.77
100 Fly: Corinne Campbell - 1:11.44
400 IM: Lara O'Brien - 5:20.85 (just missed pool record held by R-MC's Erin Ewalt)
200 Free Relay: Shafer, Marlene, Corinne, Sarah - 1:57.05
Next weekend is the final weekend for meets before we head into championship season. Friday night, we'll be up the road in Fredericksburg to take on Mary Washington and Hood. I'm looking forward to some great races against a strong Mary Washington team. The next morning, we'll hit the road again to go swim Guilford and Randolph in North Carolina.
We're down to 19 days until the ODAC Championships begin...
Saturday, January 17, 2009
Senior Day Surprise
It was Senior Day at the Brock today. I'll be honest, I thought our team would put up a decent showing, but was totally blown away by some of the time drops our swimmers put up. That's awesome....nothing better than that. Four weeks out from championships, they're still putting in a lot of hard, intense work. We entered this meet pretty beat up, which just makes the fast swims that much better. It shows that the hard work is paying off.
Let's go over some of the stats from the meet:
-R-MC had 25 total individual swims. 11 of those were lifetime bests. Out of those 25 swims, only 4 WEREN'T season best times!
-2 pool and school records were also set, Lara O'Brien in the 1000 free (10:56.50, taking down Erin Ewalt's old record of 10:58.13) and Kellianne Mullin in the 200 breast (2:29.54, erasing Katie Duff's previous best of 2:32.01).
-Tracy Spurrier took 25.41 seconds off her lifetime best in the 1000, swimming 11:50.99.
-Meredith Walters saved the best for last, swimming a best time in the 1000 in her last race at home. She took 5 seconds off her best, hitting in 11:52.41.
-Lara O'Brien took 9 seconds off her best 1000, and set a new school and pool record in the process, finishing in 10:56.55.
-Victoria Cooper took 7 seconds off her best time in the 200 Free (2:31.62) and 3 seconds off her best time in the 100 Free (1:06.96).
-Kellianne dropped 3.30 seconds off her best 200 breaststroke in setting the new record of 2:29.54.
Video of the races are now up on our YouTube page. Check them out at www.youtube.com/user/rmcswimming.
Let's go over some of the stats from the meet:
-R-MC had 25 total individual swims. 11 of those were lifetime bests. Out of those 25 swims, only 4 WEREN'T season best times!
-2 pool and school records were also set, Lara O'Brien in the 1000 free (10:56.50, taking down Erin Ewalt's old record of 10:58.13) and Kellianne Mullin in the 200 breast (2:29.54, erasing Katie Duff's previous best of 2:32.01).
-Tracy Spurrier took 25.41 seconds off her lifetime best in the 1000, swimming 11:50.99.
-Meredith Walters saved the best for last, swimming a best time in the 1000 in her last race at home. She took 5 seconds off her best, hitting in 11:52.41.
-Lara O'Brien took 9 seconds off her best 1000, and set a new school and pool record in the process, finishing in 10:56.55.
-Victoria Cooper took 7 seconds off her best time in the 200 Free (2:31.62) and 3 seconds off her best time in the 100 Free (1:06.96).
-Kellianne dropped 3.30 seconds off her best 200 breaststroke in setting the new record of 2:29.54.
Video of the races are now up on our YouTube page. Check them out at www.youtube.com/user/rmcswimming.
Tuesday, January 13, 2009
ODAC Swimmer of the Week - Lara O'Brien
Congrats to Lara on being named the ODAC Swimmer of the Week, the third R-MC swimmer to receive the honor so far this season. Lara won the 200 IM, 400 free, and was part of the winning 400 free relay team last Saturday against Bridgewater. Here is the link to the ODAC site and the press release: http://www.odaconline.com/
Monday, January 12, 2009
Bridgewater Meet
This past Saturday the team went up to Bridgewater and came back with a 133-62 victory. Our swimmers won all 11 of 11 events en route to the W. We had a little fun with the line-up for the meet, swimming some girls in "off" events, while trying to create some close races between the A and B relays. And that's all the meet was about for us, getting up and competing while working on racing skills. I wasn't too concerned with times for two reasons: 1) Bridgewater's pool is a short course meters pool, and 2) Our team wasn't that fresh, having practiced in the morning prior to getting on the bus.
Event winners were:
400 Medley Relay: "B Team" - 4:55.54
800 Free: Meredith Walters - 10:30.92
200 Free: Sarah Almond - 2:21.53
50 Free: Marlene Graf - 29.93
200 IM: Lara O'Brien - 2:40.00
100 Fly: Laura Belch - 1:14.89 (was exhibition)
100 Free: Ellie Shea - 1:07.82 (was exhibition)
100 Back: Brianna Lovell - 1:18.75
400 Free: Lara O'Brien - 4:51.27
100 Breast: Kellianne Mullin - 1:23.47
400 Free Relay: "B Team" - 4:31.44
Yeah, the B relays shut out the A relays at the meet. The medley was close though, the B hit in 4:55.54 to the A's 4:55.65. It was a good, back and forth race. Next up for our team is Greensboro next weekend, which is also Senior Day at R-MC.
Special thanks to the movie committee for two great selections on the bus rides. A guy can only take so much of the "Step Up" franchise.
Event winners were:
400 Medley Relay: "B Team" - 4:55.54
800 Free: Meredith Walters - 10:30.92
200 Free: Sarah Almond - 2:21.53
50 Free: Marlene Graf - 29.93
200 IM: Lara O'Brien - 2:40.00
100 Fly: Laura Belch - 1:14.89 (was exhibition)
100 Free: Ellie Shea - 1:07.82 (was exhibition)
100 Back: Brianna Lovell - 1:18.75
400 Free: Lara O'Brien - 4:51.27
100 Breast: Kellianne Mullin - 1:23.47
400 Free Relay: "B Team" - 4:31.44
Yeah, the B relays shut out the A relays at the meet. The medley was close though, the B hit in 4:55.54 to the A's 4:55.65. It was a good, back and forth race. Next up for our team is Greensboro next weekend, which is also Senior Day at R-MC.
Special thanks to the movie committee for two great selections on the bus rides. A guy can only take so much of the "Step Up" franchise.
Thursday, January 8, 2009
Florida Recap
Now that we've all had a few days to recover from the trip, I want to offer a little recap of what went on.
I was somewhat nervous going into the week because, while south Florida is on average sunny and beautiful this time of year, I've always seemed to be bad luck for training trips to Florida. Every trip to Florida that I've been a part of has always encountered unusually cold weather (by Florida standards), broken pool heaters, extreme wind, etc. Thankfully, we bucked that trend this year. The sun came out, the highs were in the mid to upper 70s all week long, and it never got any colder than lower 60s at night. Aside from a few sprinkles during our first long course practice, it didn't even rain while we were down there.
Enough about the weather. This week was a challenge for our swimmers. My goal was to push them in some way, shape, or form in every workout. They swam more than they've swum all year, they ran more than they've run all year, and they also encountered a few dryland/in-water circuit challenges. Props to Tracy and Shafer for winning the elbows & toes/front bridge/front plank (insert any other name you call it) competition by staying up for 5 minutes. Tracy, with a little help from a teammate, also won a pizza eating contest against one of her coaches, although the result is being disputed.
Our training trip competition took the form of a long course relay meet with the United States Merchant Marine Academy and Gustavus Adolphus College. The USMMA and Gustavus men went against each other, while our ladies went up against the Gustavus women. I don't think it needs to be said, but every swimmer in the water was racing tired that day. Nobody was really concerned with times, but it was a good opportunity to step up and race (everyone has to get up and race while tired during a 3 day championship meet too...). It was a close meet between us and Gustavus. They won several close races between the A's, and came out on top in 5 races to our 3. The battle of the B's was just the opposite, with R-MC taking 5 to Gustavus' 3. It was a fun, low-key meet.
All in all, it was a great week. I like to occasionally remind our swimmers that training trip is a business trip first and a vacation second. Translation: it's OK to have fun on training trip, but you need to make sure you're not doing so at the expense of your swimming. The team did a great job at both. They worked hard and had a great time while doing it. I think staying a block away from the beach definitely helped with that this year. Something about hanging out with your toes in the sand surrounded by palm trees in the month of January helps to lift the spirits.
I was somewhat nervous going into the week because, while south Florida is on average sunny and beautiful this time of year, I've always seemed to be bad luck for training trips to Florida. Every trip to Florida that I've been a part of has always encountered unusually cold weather (by Florida standards), broken pool heaters, extreme wind, etc. Thankfully, we bucked that trend this year. The sun came out, the highs were in the mid to upper 70s all week long, and it never got any colder than lower 60s at night. Aside from a few sprinkles during our first long course practice, it didn't even rain while we were down there.
Enough about the weather. This week was a challenge for our swimmers. My goal was to push them in some way, shape, or form in every workout. They swam more than they've swum all year, they ran more than they've run all year, and they also encountered a few dryland/in-water circuit challenges. Props to Tracy and Shafer for winning the elbows & toes/front bridge/front plank (insert any other name you call it) competition by staying up for 5 minutes. Tracy, with a little help from a teammate, also won a pizza eating contest against one of her coaches, although the result is being disputed.
Our training trip competition took the form of a long course relay meet with the United States Merchant Marine Academy and Gustavus Adolphus College. The USMMA and Gustavus men went against each other, while our ladies went up against the Gustavus women. I don't think it needs to be said, but every swimmer in the water was racing tired that day. Nobody was really concerned with times, but it was a good opportunity to step up and race (everyone has to get up and race while tired during a 3 day championship meet too...). It was a close meet between us and Gustavus. They won several close races between the A's, and came out on top in 5 races to our 3. The battle of the B's was just the opposite, with R-MC taking 5 to Gustavus' 3. It was a fun, low-key meet.
All in all, it was a great week. I like to occasionally remind our swimmers that training trip is a business trip first and a vacation second. Translation: it's OK to have fun on training trip, but you need to make sure you're not doing so at the expense of your swimming. The team did a great job at both. They worked hard and had a great time while doing it. I think staying a block away from the beach definitely helped with that this year. Something about hanging out with your toes in the sand surrounded by palm trees in the month of January helps to lift the spirits.
Friday, January 2, 2009
Thursday, January 1, 2009
A Day in the Life… of RMC TRAINING TRIP 2008/2009!!!
Well, it is now New Years Eve, and we’ve made it through eight practices with one to come tonight from 6-8 (prime training hours – obviously). The journey down south went smoothly, though I think my bladder almost exploded at one point because Ben REFUSED to pull over. Overall, mainly a good long nap in the van.
And then the true training trip began… From practice the night we arrived to doubles every day since, the trip has definitely been both a physical and a mental trial. Though the swimming has been tough, it has definitely brought the team together. We have never been so encouraging throughout practices, and with the current level of training, we need all the positive energy we can get! Especially since many of us, myself included, were a little surprised by the long course meter pool. Some of the freshman had never swum long course until now, so it was a great experience!
Yesterday we had our big meet of the trip (after morning practice of course). A tri-relay meet against a boys’ team and a girls’/boys’ team. Of course, distance swimmer Lara gets 5 events, one of which being the 200 in the crescendo – long course. Talk about a long 200… but that’s beside the point. It was actually really fun (and got us out of a practice ha!). Everyone was really motivated and cheering even though the events were a little unorthodox. Of course, Macon is never done after a meet – it was time for an hour of drylands with Ben the beast before we could make the traffic-filled trip to the annual Steak and Shake dinner. Absolutely DELICIOUS. Especially after that 5 minute plank hold – ohhh that hurt. All that ab work was immediately eliminated by the deliciousness of milkshakes and French fries – well worth it.
Which bring us to today’s New Year’s Eve training slash A-Mo’s 21st birthday BASH! Practice this morning was from 10 am to 12 pm, giving us such much needed extra sleep. Over in the D-Train we did a mind-numbing 60x100s (not a misprint – yes, 60). I suppose it could have been worse, but on about number 45 or 50 I started miscounting, not the number of 100s, but rather whether I’d done a 50 or a 100. Oh the delirium of distance swimming! (Note to future swimmers: get a REALLY good song stuck in your head before practices on training trip) Then, beach time all afternoon!! The beach has been BEAUTIFUL! Sunny and warm every day so far! Luckily, motivation for tonight’s practice will come from a swimmer’s number one love – FOOD! We’re going to The Cove, a restaurant off the water, for A-Mo’s birthday, which should be a GREAT way to spend the New Year! Everyone is extremely excited because there comes a point where PB&J just doesn’t cut it.
Some warnings for future training trip athletes:
1. The sun does indeed drain you for practice. Put on sunscreen and don’t tell Ben you were out literally all day!
2. You don’t need as many clothes as you think. Pretty sure I’ve worn the same t-shirt and shorts for 3 days…
3. Enjoy training trip in moderation
4. Norman deserves his own seat on the van. Try not to offend him.
5. Microwaves are OPTIMAL cooking appliances. Who needs stoves?
6. 5 people to a room gets a bit crowded – count to 10 and take deep breaths. Oh and get towels every time you’re in the lobby because the maid won’t actually clean your room. Let’s be honest, I wouldn’t touch that mess either!
As a quick recap, the trip has been GREAT! Definitely a lot of fun, though practices can get to be a bit much. Not a huge fan of the freezing cold short course pool, but nothing that the team can’t handle. We’re definitely going to be ready for ODACs after this extra work! I know I’m excited! Back to campus in a mere 3 days! Gotta get back to the beach!
LATER!
Lara O'Brien
And then the true training trip began… From practice the night we arrived to doubles every day since, the trip has definitely been both a physical and a mental trial. Though the swimming has been tough, it has definitely brought the team together. We have never been so encouraging throughout practices, and with the current level of training, we need all the positive energy we can get! Especially since many of us, myself included, were a little surprised by the long course meter pool. Some of the freshman had never swum long course until now, so it was a great experience!
Yesterday we had our big meet of the trip (after morning practice of course). A tri-relay meet against a boys’ team and a girls’/boys’ team. Of course, distance swimmer Lara gets 5 events, one of which being the 200 in the crescendo – long course. Talk about a long 200… but that’s beside the point. It was actually really fun (and got us out of a practice ha!). Everyone was really motivated and cheering even though the events were a little unorthodox. Of course, Macon is never done after a meet – it was time for an hour of drylands with Ben the beast before we could make the traffic-filled trip to the annual Steak and Shake dinner. Absolutely DELICIOUS. Especially after that 5 minute plank hold – ohhh that hurt. All that ab work was immediately eliminated by the deliciousness of milkshakes and French fries – well worth it.
Which bring us to today’s New Year’s Eve training slash A-Mo’s 21st birthday BASH! Practice this morning was from 10 am to 12 pm, giving us such much needed extra sleep. Over in the D-Train we did a mind-numbing 60x100s (not a misprint – yes, 60). I suppose it could have been worse, but on about number 45 or 50 I started miscounting, not the number of 100s, but rather whether I’d done a 50 or a 100. Oh the delirium of distance swimming! (Note to future swimmers: get a REALLY good song stuck in your head before practices on training trip) Then, beach time all afternoon!! The beach has been BEAUTIFUL! Sunny and warm every day so far! Luckily, motivation for tonight’s practice will come from a swimmer’s number one love – FOOD! We’re going to The Cove, a restaurant off the water, for A-Mo’s birthday, which should be a GREAT way to spend the New Year! Everyone is extremely excited because there comes a point where PB&J just doesn’t cut it.
Some warnings for future training trip athletes:
1. The sun does indeed drain you for practice. Put on sunscreen and don’t tell Ben you were out literally all day!
2. You don’t need as many clothes as you think. Pretty sure I’ve worn the same t-shirt and shorts for 3 days…
3. Enjoy training trip in moderation
4. Norman deserves his own seat on the van. Try not to offend him.
5. Microwaves are OPTIMAL cooking appliances. Who needs stoves?
6. 5 people to a room gets a bit crowded – count to 10 and take deep breaths. Oh and get towels every time you’re in the lobby because the maid won’t actually clean your room. Let’s be honest, I wouldn’t touch that mess either!
As a quick recap, the trip has been GREAT! Definitely a lot of fun, though practices can get to be a bit much. Not a huge fan of the freezing cold short course pool, but nothing that the team can’t handle. We’re definitely going to be ready for ODACs after this extra work! I know I’m excited! Back to campus in a mere 3 days! Gotta get back to the beach!
LATER!
Lara O'Brien
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