Not all fun in the sun for W. Swimming

Quakers endure four hours of practice a day and a meet with N.C. State in Florida. Although the weather was beautiful, the Quakers did not have much time to appreciate it. The improvements they made, however, more than compensated for having to sacrifice a week of break. The swimmers welcomed the opportunity to swim outdoors in a 50-meter pool, but with a pair of two-hour practices a day, Penn's team did not have much spare time to have fun. According to their coach, Kathy Lawlor-Gilbert, "they trained exceptionally well and showed a sign of progress." In addition to such strenuous training, Penn participated in two meets during the break -- the Ibis Invitational at the University of Miami on January 5, where they trained, and a league meet against Dartmouth last Saturday. At the Ibis Invite, Miami (126) beat both Penn (30) and North Carolina State (49) decisively. Freshman Jamie Taylor was sick and unable to participate, which made a significant difference in the distance and relay events. N. C. State didn't expect much competition from Penn, but the Quakers surprised the Wolfpack by giving the favorites a run for their money. "We gave N. C. State all that they could handle," Lawlor-Gilbert said. "It's too bad we couldn't have pushed just a little more, but we simply weren't relaxed enough." The Red and Blue faced the same difficulties at the Dartmouth meet. Returning to Penn after intensive training, the team endured a bus ride to Hanover, N.H., and then raced immediately afterwards. The timing of the meet was unfortunate, but the Quakers couldn't sacrifice training for Easterns for one dual meet. The Big Green (167) beat the Quakers (127), but it was not a blowout. The first event, the 200-medley relay, was a close loss and Penn placed second, fourth and fifth. The 1000-meter freestyle was a battle among three swimmers. Taylor placed third with a time of 10 minutes, 37.74 seconds, and Dartmouth's first-place finisher, Gret Duckworth, had a time of 10:36.85. In the third event, the 200-free, freshman Michelle Amicone and sophomore Jen Triolo swam well, placing third and fourth respectively. After the first three events, the divers competed in the one-meter and three-meter. Although the Quakers are a couple of weeks behind Dartmouth in training, Johanna Minich and Ruthie Rowbottom made good showings, coming in fourth and fifth, respectively, in both events. The performances of Kourtney Krom (first) and Jen Walsh (third) in the 200-meter butterfly were particularly impressive. In addition, freshman Caroline Shipps won both the 50-meter and the 100-meter free. "We had a chance to win [at Dartmouth], I just think we were too tired from all of that training," Shipps said. "It was definitely worth it, though, because we'll be ready for Easterns." Although the scores of the meets may not be impressive, Penn was proud of its performance. Having had no time to rest before the meets, however, they were not expected to perform their best. Regardless of the results, the Quakers team made progress. As a result of their hard work, dedication, and enthusiasm, the Red and Blue are "on the edge of breaking through" to a new level, if not gaining a rare league victory, according to Lawlor-Gilbert.

Please note All comments are eligible for publication in The Daily Pennsylvanian.