After making strides, W. Swimming opens season with new confidence

The Penn women's swimming team has its opener this Saturday at Cornell. Confident that they have made great strides both physically and mentally since last season, the Quakers are eagerly awaiting this race. It is the first step to their 1996-97 goal -- to win an Ivy League meet. Last year, although they did win three of their eight meets, the Quakers were consistently defeated by the members of the Ancient Eight. Last year, Penn was defeated by the Big Red in its season opener. But despite the similar circumstance, the swimmers and divers do not seem to be particularly worried. "Last year it was a very intimidating meet, but this year, because of our added size and experience, we should do O.K.," sophomore backstroker Lauren Ballough said. "They are a great team, and a good opportunity for tough races and top times." The Quakers are also not overly worried about this race because they view Saturday's meet as merely a chance to test the waters and get back into racing form. After last year's opener, Penn improved its times fairly consistently. The Red and Blue believe this season will be more successful than last, and Saturday's meet against the Big Red will be an good indication of the direction in which the Quakers are headed. The swimmers and divers declared that a win would definitely bode well for the upcoming season and would boost morale. "All the divers have been working hard, are looking good, and are excited for the meet," freshman diver Alayne Rowan said. With such a young team, this meet is especially important for the freshmen. Their first appearance in collegiate athletics will give them much-needed experience and help assuage the intimidation they may initially feel. Although Penn graduated three seniors and has none on the team this year, the talent of the freshmen should compensate for anything that was lost. Lawlor-Gilbert was hesitant to mention particularly strong swimmers and divers. Since it is the beginning of the season, she doesn't feel prepared to comment on either the team or her expectations for them. Cornell and Penn are evenly matched teams. Both are considered to be at an intermediate level when compared to their competition. On a purely technical level, they have similar strengths. Consequently, each event in the competition will be extremely tough. Ultimately it will come down to the little things -- the starts and the turns. "A lot of fast swimming as well as the strength and determination that I see during daily practice," responded Lawlor-Gilbert, when asked what she hoped for on Saturday.