Don't let their bronzed skin and rosy cheeks fool you.
The Penn swimmers' 10-day training trip to Florida this winter break was about much more than lounging on the beach.
The swimmers took time from their rigorous practice schedule only to participate in the FloridaInternational Invitational meet, in which the men beat out four other squads to capture first place and the women placed fourth out of eight teams.
"The thing you have to keep in mind with this meet is that it is in the middle of training trip, so you are broken down and you are tired," senior captain Maureen Schriver said.
The coaches looked to capitalize on the precious block of training time, holding double practices everyday. As the Jan. 2 meet approached, both teams were forced to overcome their fatigue to the best of their abilities.
"The men really stepped up," coach Mike Schnur said. "They swam well despite being tired. I think the women were a little more affected by it. They were a little more tired in some ways and they had some stiffer competition. The women got some good experience, though."
With 16 top-three finishes in their individual events and a second place finish in the 200-yard freestyle relay, the men (1-3, 0-3 EISL) accumulated a total of 568 points as they earned their first tournament title of the year.
"We expected to do well, but it was nice that everyone was able to swim well tired," sophomore backstroker Teddy Rainaud said.
"This year the morale was a lot higher on our trip. Our training was a lot more intense. There is a lot more quality in that and I think it carried over into our meet."
Schnur also not surprised by the victory. He further predicts that the men's recent win foreshadows a bright semester to come.
"I knew this was coming," Schnur said. "I told the men early in the year that first semester we were going to be finding out what kind of team we were, and that we'd be much better in January and February than we were in November and December, and it is definitely coming true.
Both the men and the women (3-2, 2-2) will look to begin the semester with a win against Brown this weekend.
"We haven't beaten Brown since I think 1987," Schriver said. "We are just as competitive as they are. There is no reason why they should have any advantage over us whatsoever. As long as everyone is focused and works hard I think we will win."
Like the men, the women look to the upcoming match, and the rest of the semester, with a new sense of confidence and strength.
"At this point everyone is ready for a fresh start," Schriver said. "Coming out of a training trip you are back in shape, you've had two weeks to worry just aboutswimming."
"Everyone's a lot more fired up and we are a lot more united as a team. I have a really good feeling going into the rest of the season."
Megan Carlin led the Quakers, edging out the competition to finish first in the 100 yard breaststroke. With seven other top-ten finishes, the Red and Blue earned the fourth place spot in the final tournament standings.
And the women are certainly not discouraged by the fourth place finish.
"While it is important to take every single meet seriously, performances during the [Florida International Invitational] don't necessarily dictate what anyone is going to do at any other meet," Schriver said.
"We had doubles practically everyday, and one of the conditions of going on a training trip is you have to do a meet while you are down there."
Tan and well rested, the women have returned to Philadelphia with more than the Florida International Invitational, more than the Brown team in mind.
"We are not changing our focus at all for the women. The focus is on Ivies and ECACs," Schnur said.
