Looking up at Sheerr Pool's record board, it is obvious that Penn coach Mike Schnur has been doing something right over the past few years.
Out of the 17 Penn women's swimming records in existence, 15 have been added to the record books during Schnur's four years at the helm of the women's squad.
"I think when you look up there and see all those '01s and '02s, the first thing you think to yourself is, 'That's amazing,'" junior freestyler Jessica Anders said.
Penn has already tallied eight school records this season, and the squad is yet to capitalize on a major taper that should drop times even further.
"In the next few meets, we just have to... really focus on Ivies and ECACs," Rachel Zappalorti said. "Hopefully we will have '02s covering that entire board."
While Penn has begun to venture into uncharted waters in terms of the program's success, it still has never beaten Navy in Annapolis, Md.
Come Saturday, the Quakers will get that chance.
"I think it's really exciting when you can win, period," Anders said. "But when you can beat a new team, at home, in their pool, I think it just goes to show how far we've come in three years. I definitely think that winning at Navy would just be another bonus to the season."
Navy's Lejeune Hall has often caught teams unaware, partly because it features a meter pool, rather than the customary yardage pools of collegiate competition.
ÿBecause of the 10 percent difference between yards and meters, the distance events correspondingly change in meets, also -- the 1000 yard freestyle will become the 800 meter freestyle and the 500 yard free will become the 400 meter free.
All of the other events in the lineup will remain their normal lengths, which should benefit the Quakers.
"I think that plays into our hands, because of how hard our women train," Schnur said. "The longer the race, the better we're going to be."
The adjustment to meters would normally affect the 200 swimmers the most -- it is the longest unaltered event -- but even these swimmers do not seem too concerned about the adjustment.
"I think we're going to have to swim our races differently," Zappalorti said. "It is going to be a longer race, but we've done the training, so it shouldn't hinder us at all."
Zappalorti is Penn's number one swimmer in the 200 butterfly.
Like Penn, the Midshipmen boast a strong freshman class.
Navy will count on a trio of rookies -- Megan Welsh in the middle distance freestyle, Tori Throckmorton in butterfly and Stephanie Brown in the backstroke -- to try and keep the meet close.
Yet, neither Welsh nor Brown have matched either of Penn's freshmen standouts' times. Katie Stores and Katie Frazee each hold two of Penn's school records -- Frazee owns the 100 and 200 backstroke records, and Katie Stores holds the 100 and 200 freestyle records.
While Schnur expects many of the number one swimmers to win their events, Penn's depth will likely be the key to victory on Saturday.
"We have a lot of depth on this team, and I know that is going to carry us through," Zappalorti said.
With three meets left, Penn marches down the home stretch of the season in one of its best positions in school history.
And this is only the beginning. "There's still a lot left to accomplish," Schnur said. "I think the success and failure of our season is definitely still to be determined. Next week's a big one, and then Ivy Championships, but so far I couldn't be happier. The future of our team looks pretty good."
