RIT's Caitlyn Burr in the Women's 800 yard freestyle race on Saturday, December 6, 2008.
Evan Witek

This new year, a group of RIT athletes got to miss the deep cold of Rochester by taking a training trip down to warm and sunny Florida. With bad weather and high prices abounding, the RIT men’s and women’s swimming & diving teams forewent the usual plane ride and instead piled into a bus for a 22-hour ride south. It was the fourth year the swimming & diving teams have made such a trip. The teams shared pools with top swimming programs from around the country and were, in fact, the only Division III teams practicing there. This trip plays into the long-term season goals of each team.

So far this year, the men’s team record is three wins with two losses; the women’s is the reverse: 2 - 3. When asked about this season, Coach Mike Cahill was extremely optimistic. Unlike other sports, where maintaining a season record propels teams to the playoffs, in swimming, the season is a constant buildup to the State Tournament. Meets are a good way for teams to check how they are doing throughout the season as they prepare for the final showdown that is States. Women’s Captain Caitlyn Burr, a third year Finance major, said, “States is like your final say.” It’s more important to the team to end the year at the tournament with a strong statement and a good finish than it is to win the small meets leading up to it.

Cahill is aiming for numbers to get the teams in the State Tournament. They’re working towards having the men’s team finish in the top three or four in men’s Division III Swimming & Diving in New York, while the women’s goal is the top six. Alongside the team goals, Cahill has his eye on sending some individual players to the NCAA Tournament. Men’s Captain Casey Schneider, a third year Industrial Design major, agrees that one of his personal career goals is to reach the national scope.

Though the season’s goal is to perform well in the State Tournament, as well as to send swimmers and divers to the NCAA tournament, any team has its eye on the future. Overall, the Tigers are a very young team. Cahill called it an “excellent recruiting year, especially on the women’s side.” The men’s and women’s teams combine to have 19 first year students in total, 12 of them on the women’s team.

With such a large contingency of young teammates, maturity could be an issue. According to the captains, that is not the case. Women’s Captain Cat Jones, a fourth year Interpreting major, said that the team has great character. Rather than trying to direct the team, the captains are choosing to lead by good example and out-of-pool encouragement. The training week in Florida is one example, but, according to Burr, all team gatherings outside of the pool are the best way to make new teammates feel comfortable.

With this season shaping towards another successful State Tournament for the Tigers, and as each young team looks to the future, RIT’s swimming & diving program seems to keep improving. The next home meet for the women’s team is February 20, against William Smith, and the next joint meet at home is February 7, against Nazareth. Go Tigers!